Turn Up The Heat
by ravenbard
Summary: There was something between them, a potent, volatile mixture of heat and chemistry that threatened to rage out of control…
1. Chapter 1 – Kindle

**TITLE: **Turn Up The Heat

**RATING:** M for language, sex and mature themes

**PAIRING:** Pam/Tara

**SYNOPSIS:** There was something between them, a potent, volatile mixture of heat and chemistry that threatened to rage out of control…

**DISCLAIMER:** True Blood and its deliciously dysfunctional characters do not belong to me.

**A/N** – This is sort of AU. It may or may not follow some plot points and scenes from True Blood Season 5 because I just wanted to focus on Tara and Pam exploring all the _feelings_ they harbor for each other without getting into the whole Bilith/Authority shit storm. And not just the gooey, gives-you-a-cavity, sugary sweet kind of feelings, though those are nice. I'm talkin' the primal, intense, _raw_ type feelings. *shrugs* Just thought I'd try on a new hat. Let me know how it goes.

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**Chapter 1 – Kindle**

"_You have to walk carefully in the beginning of love; the running across fields into your lover's arms can only come later when you're sure they won't laugh if you trip." – Jonathan Carroll _

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There was something between. Tara was made known of its presence the second she had crawled out of the freshly dug grave, encased head to toe in dirt and locked her rich coffee stained eyes with Pam's electric blue gaze.

It wasn't just Pam's blood, though that had been the catalyst that had opened up many opportunistic avenues for wickedly wild and passionate dreams that had left Tara gasping for needless breaths in her coffin and a pulsating ache between her legs that refused to quell.

It wasn't just the maker/progeny bond either. The invisible string that tethered Tara to Pam and Pam to Tara revealed things that both vampires would rather keep secret but it couldn't actively manipulate them into _feeling_ things for the other.

No. It was something else. Something heady, potent and volatile. Something that threatened to rage out of control and consume maker and progeny both…

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Jessica regarded Tara with a sly smile; her eyes fairly twinkling with merry delight as she watched the vampire in question sneak yet another glance at her maker for what had to be the hundredth time that night. Curiosity finally getting the better of her, the redhead vampire finally voiced aloud her growing suspicions.

"Do you like her?"

Tara's head snapped up from behind the book she was currently (falsely) engrossed in. It was a slow night at Fangtasia, an oddity in itself but it did happen. However, the slow pace of the evening didn't bode well for Tara, who liked to keep busy. Idle hands were the devil's workshop after all and the young vampire had sought to remedy the situation by burying her head in the pages of her latest novel. That had been her initial plan but it had quickly become a ruse, a device she hid behind in order to indulge in her latest hobby: watching Pam.

"Do I like who?" Tara drawled uninterestedly, her face an impassive mask as she spared the briefest of glances at Jessica before returning her attention to the book.

Jessica traced the rim of her glass with a magnolia-white finger. "Pam," she whispered conspiratorially before casting a sidelong glance at the newly instated owner of Fangtasia.

Pam was sequestered on Eric's throne, her pose haughty and regal, and her expression unreadable as she trained an azure blue gaze around the bar and its patrons. Dressed in a deep purple corset top that laced at the back, skin tight black pants tucked inside calf-length leather boots and hair framing her face in loose waves of golden-blonde, Pam looked every bit as dangerous and as sexy as she portrayed herself to be.

"I ain't got no idea whatcha talkin' 'bout," Tara replied dryly. She thumbed to the next page, making a show of pointedly ignoring Jessica.

"Uh huh," Jessica returned, a knowing smile creeping across her face. She knocked back her Tru Blood concoction of "two parts O neg and one part B pos" then almost choked on the ruby red liquid with glee when she spotted Tara peering up at Pam from the top of her book. "You're lookin' at her again," the redhead sing-songed looking absolutely titillated at having caught Tara red handed.

"Shut it, Red," Tara snapped. She closed the book with an audible clap, tossed it onto the counter next to the cash register then pushed herself up off the wall she had been leaning against before walking to stand in front of Jessica from behind the bar, a scowl etched on her lips. "Doncha got somewhere else to be?"

Jessica shook her head, sending tendrils of ginger locks to sway gently around her youthful face. "Nope." She drained the rest of her drink, smacked her lips in pleasure and was about to say something else to Tara when a beer-bellied man lurched up to the bar and slammed his mug none to gently down onto the countertop.

"Beer," he commanded, his deep Southern drawl made more pronounced by his drunken slur. He punctuated the word with a loud belch that made Jessica wince in disgust.

Tara arched an intimidating eyebrow at the redneck's direction, her bittersweet chocolate eyes leveling an unamused look on his face.

The drunken man blinked stupidly up at Tara when she failed to freshen up his mug. When her unamused looked turned to a withering glare, he blanched and fumbled for something to say. It took a while to extract the word Tara was looking for from his alcohol soaked brain but he managed nonetheless.

"Ah…please?" he blurted out, shrinking slightly under the weight of Tara's glare.

"Good boy," Tara praised sarcastically, a completely insincere smile tugging at the corner of her lips. It vanished completely as she set about refilling the man's glass. "Fuckin' hillbilly rednecks," she grumbled under her breath as she poured the drunken man a new mug of Bud. As she waited for the glass to fill, she couldn't help but cast another inconspicuous glance at her maker's direction. What harm could it do? She had been playing this game for weeks and trusted that her ogling would remain under the radar.

Tara managed to prove herself wrong when she was caught.

Pam's eyes, a startling shade of glacial blue, bore into Tara's liquid brown ones with an intensity that could be felt by the young vampire even with the small distance between them. A pale eyebrow rose at Tara's scrutiny and if she could have blushed, the ebony skinned vampire's cheeks would have been stained crimson. Instead, she quickly ducked her head then proceeded to curse under her breath as the mug she was holding overfilled and sloshed beer all over her hand.

"Fuck," she hissed as she pulled the stopper on the beer tap. Across the room, Pam let loose a quiet raspy laugh that sent a scowl crawling across Tara's lips. Grabbing the cloth she always tucked into the back pocket of her jeans, she wiped up the mess, wiped down the mug and slammed it down in front of the drunken man.

"Thanks, babe," he slurred, sliding a ten over to Tara. "Keep the change."

"I'm _not_ your babe," Tara hissed insolently, swiping the money from the countertop and dropping it into the till. She tensed slightly when Pam emitted another low chuckle that floated over to tickle her ears. Scowl deepening, Tara straightened her back and squared her shoulders. She purposely turned her back on her maker, adopted an air of indifference and began stacking the highball glasses on the counter space by the sink.

Throughout the commotion, Jessica observed Tara with a growing smirk but it quickly faltered when Tara glowered menacingly at her. Holding up her hands in the universal gesture of surrender, Jessica pushed back her bar stool and stood. "Okay, okay, I'll stop," she said. She glanced at the clock behind Tara. "I gotta go anyway. Bill expects me home by 4." She pulled a face at the thought of being on a curfew but knew better than to disobey her maker.

"Yes. Run on home to your daddy now," Tara said mock sweetly. She gestured towards the exit. "G'wan. Get."

Jessica rolled her cornflower blue eyes before bracing both hands flat on the bar and leaning her weight on them so that she could lift herself up and drape the top half of her body over the bar to peck Tara on the cheek. "Just think about it," she whispered softly into Tara's ear. Straightening back up, she smiled at Tara, turned and offered Pam a cheery wave (Pam merely arched that infamous brow) then bounced happily out of the bar.

Tara shook her head, both in exasperation and amusement. "Fuckin' baby vamps," she groused affectionately, borrowing the well-used phrase from Pam before turning her attention back to closing up the bar.

Across the room, Pam watched her progeny with an indiscernible look in her eye and a barely there smile dancing across her lips.

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Tara was in the office, which doubled as the bar's stockroom, counting the inventory when she heard the outer door open. She exhaled silently but kept her head down low as her maker breezed into the room, bringing with her the unmistakable scent of apples and vanilla.

When Tara had first been turned, she had experienced a sensory overload. Everything was in hyper drive, from her all too acute hearing to her pin-sharp vision to a nose that was as keen as a bloodhound's. As she had learned to control her newfound vampire abilities, she came to realize that each vampire had their own unique scent.

Eric smelled like the winter sea, his scent carrying a bite of salt and ice. Jessica ironically smelled like strawberries and cream. A vampire regular who Tara had come to know and befriend smelt like malt whisky and butterscotch. And Pam, Pam smelt like apples and vanilla, which Tara thought suited her maker's personality to a T. Crisp, tart and just a little bit sweet; that was Pam in a nutshell. It was an intoxicating combination, one that never failed to send Tara's newborn vampire hormones into a frenzy.

Pam's scent invaded the office now and Tara had to bite down hard on her lower lip in order to contain a moan that was itching to crawl up her throat. The small confines of the office was magnifying her maker's scent to almost unbearable levels and Tara just wanted to just stop what she was doing and inhale every iota of Pam's aroma. Instead, she focused hard on the inventory list in her hands.

"Are you almost done for the night?" Pam asked by way of greeting. She received a noncommittal grunt in reply and hiked up a regal eyebrow. "Something wrong with your tongue there, Tara?"

"No, _m'am_," Tara bit out, sarcasm dripping from every syllable. She flinched when Pam vamp sped up to her and reached out to grip her jaw.

"Don't you get uppity with me, ya hear?" Pam's dry drawl was anything but impressed and she waited until Tara nodded reluctantly, petulance flashing in her dark eyes, before releasing her hold on her progeny. A finger lingered though and before Pam pulled away completely, she stroked an imaginary line down that strong, proud jaw. It was a barely there gesture, but it was there.

Maker and progeny stared at each other, scant seconds ticking by completely ignored as the air around them grew preternaturally still. The spell then broke when Pam stepped away from Tara and dropped her eyes to the ground.

"Ginger's closing up outside so you can go to ground when you're done here," Pam stated crisply as she situated herself behind the desk and booted up her pink laptop.

Tara offered Pam a curt nod, then went back to counting the inventory, marking down numbers on the spreadsheet in her hand as she went.

As Pam perused the webpages she pulled from the internet browser, she couldn't help but sweep her eyes over to Tara. Having been forced upon each other due to dire circumstances, the pair didn't often communicate past barking orders and wisecrack comebacks. However, there were moments when Pam was alone with Tara that allowed the blonde herself to introspectively contemplate the reluctantly growing bond between them.

Pam wasn't stupid. Far from it. As a human, she learned how to be shrewd, having grown up in an era where men dominated. As a vampire, she had developed a keen intellect that kept people on their toes. No. Pam definitely wasn't stupid. But whatever it was that was slowly but surely transpiring between Tara and herself was definitely foreign territory.

There were echoes of emotions regarding this _thing_ between them, from both parties. As neither was yet willing to admit it out loud, these echoes manifested themselves in different ways. For Tara, it was sidelong glances and wistful looks. For Pam it was the surge of near primal protectiveness that pounded through her veins whenever she felt Tara had gotten herself into a tight spot. That along with stolen glances whenever she was in close vicinity of her progeny.

Unbeknownst to Pam, these odd _feelings_ were about to make an appearance in a new way. She was startled out of her reverie when her cell phone chirped, signaling a new text message. Glancing at the screen, Pam heaved a sigh before snapping the phone shut.

"I'm going out," the flaxen haired vampire announced. "Try not to destroy my bar while I'm gone," she added wryly as she edged round the desk.

"Whatever," Tara muttered. She made a note on the bottom of the spreadsheet then turned and handed it to Pam. "Here."

Pam didn't move. "Put it on the desk," she said gesturing to the furniture in question.

"You're standing right next to the goddamn desk," Tara huffed in irritation. She shook the finished spreadsheet in front of Pam who simply arched a blonde eyebrow. "Jesus _Christ_, just take it would ya?" Tara growled.

Pam's raised eyebrow threatened to disappear into her hairline but she took the proffered item and tossed in onto the desk. "There," she drawled, her eyes electric with thinly veiled amusement at Tara's outburst. "Happy?"

"Deliriously so," Tara shot back, her voice coated with infuriation. She shook her head in annoyance, turned on her heel and stalked out of the office, muttering nonsensically as she went.

Pam watched her go, a smirk playing about her lips. "Sometimes, you just make it too easy," she murmured at Tara's retreating back before blurring out of the office and into the balmy Louisiana night.

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It was minutes to dawn. Pam felt the pull of Sleep as she walked into the office and sat on the couch to pull off her boots. She was just about to change into a simple pink track suit when a pulse of terror shrieked down the maker/progeny bond, momentarily stealing her (metaphorical) breath away.

The blonde was off the couch, out of the office and down in the basement quicker than one could say "go!"

Tara was found sitting up in her coffin, tears of deep crimson red streaking down her cheeks. Her body quaked under the intensity of her sobs and she gripped the side of her coffin so hard that the polished wood began to splinter.

"Hey." Pam was at her progeny's side in an instant. Kneeling next to the coffin, she reached out and gently cupped Tara's cheek, the gesture a far cry from the firm grip she had on Tara's jaw earlier that night. "Hey," she repeated, her voice a soothing burr.

Tara turned fear laden eyes onto Pam, her terror so palpable that Pam couldn't help but scan a wary eye around the basement for threats. But there was nothing down there save for maker and progeny.

"What's wrong?" Pam found herself asking softly. She thumbed away a ruby red droplet of blood that clung to the skin of Tara's cheek.

"Nothin'," Tara managed to rasp, her voice rough with emotion. "Bad dream," she explained quietly when Pam turned incredulous eyes onto her.

Pam nodded silently. She knew about Tara's less than ideal childhood, knew about the raging alcoholic that called herself Tara's mother. More importantly, Pam knew that _she_ had featured in some of Tara's nightmares, having tried to kill her more than once in the past. Her jaw cinched at the thought of Tara being afraid of her and the notion caused the blonde to look away lest her progeny see the shame in her eyes.

Tara frowned when her maker cut her eyes away from her though Pam made it a point to keep her hand on her cheek, her thumb absentmindedly stroking imaginary circles along the soft skin it found. Knowing that Pam would be less than willing to divulge her musings, the young vampire tapped into the bond they shared. Sorting through the torrent of emotions, Tara found shame and regret to be pinging the loudest. Instantly, she knew where Pam's thoughts had wandered.

"I ain't afraid of you," Tara offered quietly. She smothered a tired laugh when Pam turned back to look at her, blue eyes widening in shock. "We're connected remember?" the ebony skinned vampire reminded her maker. "I can feel what your feelin'."

"Fuckin' bond," Pam muttered derisively. Dropping her hand from her progeny's cheek, she turned to fully face Tara. "Do you still need me to hold your hand or can I get some beauty sleep now?"

When Tara failed to reply with words but stared up at Pam instead with beseeching eyes, the flaxen haired vampire sighed in resignation.

"C'mon," she muttered, reaching out to grab Tara's hand. She had to steady her progeny when Tara clambered clumsily out of the coffin, caught her foot on the side and almost fell into Pam's arms. Her maker caught her deftly, deceptively strong arms winding around Tara in a loose but firm embrace.

Tara stared into Pam's eyes. Being in such close proximity to her maker's face, Tara could make out flecks of ice-blue chips dotted haphazardly around a turbulent sea of steel-blue and winter-gray in Pam's eyes.

"Beautiful," Tara whispered reverently, a dreamy look clouding the brown of her eyes. Before she could even register what she was doing, she leaned in and ghosted a kiss across Pam's slightly parted ones.

Pam went rigid the minute Tara's lips pressed against her own. The young vampire's scent, a bold mix of oranges and dark chocolate seeped between her lips and draped itself across her taste buds, lingering like fine wine.

Tara was sent crashing back to reality the second she felt Pam tense. Drawing back, she started to scoot out of the cradle of Pam's arms, an apology poised and waiting on the tip of her tongue when Pam's arms relaxed then tightened around Tara, disallowing her any further movement.

"Pam?" Tara's voice was uncertain and there was a child-like quality to tentativeness painted on her face as she waited for her maker's judgment.

Pam swallowed around the lump in her throat. "Come," she instructed quietly. She wrapped an arm around Tara's waist, anchoring her to her side. Dawn had broken outside and Tara's movements were sluggish with exhaustion, her body unable to withstand being up past the morning sun.

"Where are we going?"

"The office," came Pam's quiet reply. When Tara nearly tripped on the first step of the stairs, Pam simply swept her up into her arms bridal style and vamp sped back to the office. She paused at the entrance only to flick off the lights with a nudge of her elbow then made her way to the couch where she lay Tara gently down before joining her.

Tara immediately snuggled into Pam, the pull of Sleep making her bold enough to physically act on her impulses. She breathed a sigh of utter contentment as Pam enclosed her arms around her and pressed a kiss to her temple.

"Sleep, s_chätzlein_," Pam murmured, the German term of endearment falling easily past her lips. _Sleep, my little treasure_.

Yes, there was something between them. There was no use, no point in denying it. With that almost absentminded kiss, Tara had set the ball rolling for an inevitable series of chain reactions that would carve deep grooves into their future. The very thought both petrified and calmed Pam. It was by far the oddest combination of emotions Pam had experienced in her hundred and forty odd years on Earth.

Knowing that she couldn't currently spare any more time pondering the sudden development between her and Tara, Pam tucked the issue away in the corner of her mind, far enough to grant her a good day's sleep but not far enough that she would dismiss it altogether.

Settling further into the couch, Pam held Tara as she allowed the pull of Sleep to bring her under.

**TBC**

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**A/N 2** – Beyond knowing how to say, Good morning/afternoon/night, hello, thank you and goodbye, my knowledge of German is nil. So I turned to the power of Google, found a list of endearments and picked out a few of my favorites. Hopefully, the term I used wasn't taken out of context.

**S**_**chätzlein**_ – literally "my little treasure" though it can also mean "honey", "sweetheart" (according to Google)


	2. Chapter 2 – Smolder

**A/N** – Hi, y'all! Thank you so very much for all your feedback and reviews! I truly appreciate each and every one of you taking the time to leave me your thoughts. I'm glad this story is being well received because I really enjoy writing it. Now, without further ado, here's the next chapter. Happy reading!

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**Chapter 2 – Smolder**

"_Falling in love consists in merely uncorking the imagination and bottling the common sense."_ – Helen Rowland

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The kiss they shared in the basement changed things. It was a subtle change, but a change nonetheless. The previously dormant embers of passion had been stoked, kindled. Now it glowed orange-red, shedding sparks to scatter around itself as it fed on the potent cocktail of emotions from both maker and progeny.

There was now a new dynamic to the way Tara and Pam interacted with each other, a new kind of heat, of tension, that crackled between them like so much static.

Tara had moved on stolen glances, trading them for blatant stares, stares that Pam reciprocated with unflinching intensity.

Pam had begun leaving lingering touches. A brush of her fingers against Tara's shoulder. A hand dawdling on the small of her progeny's back. And when they were alone, her eyes caressed Tara's toned body like wisps of silk, her cerulean blue eyes tracing, sweeping and marking every square inch of her progeny.

They didn't talk about the kiss. They didn't need to. The bond that tied them together for eternity was alive with emotion, new emotions that ran rampant up and down the maker/progeny cord like an overzealous child strung out on too much sugar. These newfound feelings were relentless, bounding between Tara and Pam like ping pong balls, often sending both parties reeling under its intensity and drunk on its potency.

Both knew it was only a matter of time before the chemistry and heat between them collided in what promised to be a grand explosion of lust and desire. It was inevitable as the moon and the stars against a pitch black sky. After all, where's there's smoke, there's fire…

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Fangtasia was filled to bursting with people. Friday night saw an eclectic mixture of vampires, fangbangers, curious humans and gawking if not somewhat nervous tourists. These various life forms were scattered across every available inch of the bar's floor space, some socializing, some scouring for willing prey and some brooding into their respective glasses of alcohol or blood.

Pam was lounging in Eric's throne, one leg crossed in front of the other. She was decked out in a form-hugging onyx black latex dress with hot pink trimmings. Elbow length gloves, fishnet stockings and four-inch spiked heels complimented the outfit. Her makeup was dramatic; crimson red lipstick and thick black eyeliner that threw sharp focus to the almost preternatural blue of her eyes. Her hair was teased and curled around her head like golden-blonde cloud. In short, the blonde was beautiful, dangerous and sinfully erotic to look at.

And looks did the owner of Fangtasia get. Pam was the receiver of almost every emotion in the book; from lust to envy, from desire to jealousy. However, despite the attention she was garnering from the crowd, the flaxen haired vampire gave no outward indication that she acknowledged the looks. No. Pam showed no flicker of interest for her attention was fixated on something else. _Someone_ else.

Tara.

The young vampire was working the pole that night. She worked that pole like it was merely an extension of her and as she danced around it, her ebony hued skinned glistened like liquid black gold under the dim overhead lights.

Pam watched her progeny with eyes that were heavily lidded with abject desire. Tara was clad in nothing more than blood-red scraps of leather that barely covered her essentials. Her body twisted, gyrated and grinded around, on and against the pole. Each movement served to send a jolt of want down between Pam's thighs but she couldn't tear her eyes away from the titillating sight if her undead life depended on it.

Tara in turn, danced only for Pam, though she was attracting quite a crowd around her station. However, the people buzzing around her like vultures meant nothing. The appreciative looks and hungry stares meant nothing. She was dancing for Pam, only Pam. She could _feel_ her maker's eyes on her, felt the heat emanating from those azure blue depths. And when the tip of Pam's tongue poked out to wet her full bottom lip, Tara felt that act straight between her legs. It made her feel powerful, god-like, knowing that she held such sway over her maker. Pam's attention was concentrated solely on her and Tara was going to milk it for all she was worth.

She shimmied up to the top of the pole, hooked a toned leg around it then flipped herself upside down. Eyes the color bittersweet chocolate locked onto Pam's lust-clouded blue eyes as she slid down the pole in an aching slow manner, her hair fanning out below her like a midnight black silk sheet.

Pam swallowed audibly, the only sign of her evident arousal. Her face remained deadpan however, as she watched as Tara righted herself, threw her tousled hair over her shoulders in a careless gesture then bent forward enticingly until her ass was pressed up against the pole. Her eyes remained trained on Pam's face as she grinded her ass against the pole, her hands running up and down her sides and over her breasts before she straightened back up, threw her head back, shut her eyes and raked her fingers through her hair. Her mouth hung open slightly in a wordless moan and the cords in her neck strained as she tilted her head further back, her hips swaying to the pulsating beat of drums that thrummed out from the bar's speakers.

Pam's eyes zeroed in on Tara's newly exposed torso. She watched the play of abdominal muscles ebbing and flowing with each swish of Tara's hips under all that delicious skin and had to almost physically restrain herself from blurring up to where Tara was, hauling her off the pole and throwing her on the ground to fuck her senseless, public scrutiny be damned.

The blonde was so entranced by her progeny's pole dancing skills that she failed to notice her maker enter the bar. Fangtasia's patrons did though and time seemed to slow as the tall, blonde former Viking cut through the crowd like a knife through butter.

At over a thousand years old, Eric Northman was a study in superiority and power, neither of which he attempted to mask as he breezed through the crowd with effortless ease. Vampire and human alike gave him a wide berth, awe and terror seeping from their pores as Eric bypassed them without a single glance.

Pam's maker paused at the corner of the stage and regarded his progeny with a sly smirk. It was blatantly obvious that Pam was enthralled and he didn't need to follow her obsessive gaze to know who had enraptured his child so thoroughly.

"You know," he murmured into a pale ear as he came to a quiet stop next to Pam. "At the rate you're eye-fucking her, she won't be able to walk for days."

Now, vampires were not easily startled and they certainly were not easily snuck up upon. But Eric had managed to do both when Pam jumped ever so slightly in his throne. The movement was subtle, too subtle for the average human eye to pick out but Eric was a vampire and he acknowledged the slight twitch Pam made with a triumphant grin.

"And your point is?" Pam drawled dryly as she attempted to regain her composure. She reluctantly wrenched her eyes away from the sensual sight of Tara twirling almost lazily around the pole to look up at her maker.

Eric was dressed in a simple black muscle tee and dark denim jeans. On his feet were worn biker boots and his impressively muscled arms were encased within a black leather jacket. His dark blonde hair was slicked back off his high forehead, revealing prominent cheekbones and sea-blue eyes that twinkled with boyish mischief down at Pam.

"No point," he replied softly. "Just an observation." He bent and pressed his lips lovingly to Pam's temple. _"Mitt barn,"_ he whispered around the kiss. _My child._

"_Fader_," Pam responded quietly in kind, her voice laced with a fierce kind of love and respect as she reveled in the affection Eric was bestowing upon her. The pain of Eric releasing her had been indescribable; it was like he had cut off a viable limb and left her to flounder in the open sea without a life vest. However, Eric had made it a point to not let their newly independent lives affect their relationship. He made it clear that he was still her maker, her father, her brother, her son. And she wouldn't have it any other way.

"What are you doing here, Eric?" Pam questioned when the trading of sentiments was over. She settled back into the throne and resumed her shameless eyeballing of Tara.

"Just checking in," came Eric's absentminded murmur as he too joined Pam in watching Tara give everyone (but mostly Pam) a good show. A hand snaked out and its fingers found purchase around one of Pam's wayward locks that brushed her right shoulder. Eric toyed with that lock of hair, sifting its silky softness through his fingers even as he observed Tara swing around the pole like a pro.

Pam sighed softly at the feel of Eric playing with her hair. It was something he did that soothed both their nerves. Relaxing into her maker's touch, she refocused all of her attention onto Tara.

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Tara couldn't help the burn of jealously that coursed through her body as she watched Eric and Pam interact. She knew that they had once been lovers, knew that Eric had knowledge, deep, _intimate_ knowledge of the blonde that Tara wasn't yet privy to. And even though she knew that Pam no longer harbored romantic feelings toward the tall Viking vampire, Tara's newborn vampire hormones wouldn't listen to reason as they continued to wreak chaos throughout her body.

She knew she was being irrational; well as least her brain knew. Her hormones, on the other hand, had declared audio impairment and refused to listen to rhyme nor reason. If it weren't for the way Pam was stroking her with her eyes, her gaze of deep cerulean blue sweeping across every inch of her body like a physical caress, Tara would have climbed off the pole, blurred up to Eric and boldly challenged the former Viking for sole rights to Pam. She would have lost of course, Eric being hundreds of years older, but her senseless hormones would have been drunk on the satisfaction that she had made her claim known.

Tara was brought out of her tempestuous internal musings when she felt a hand on her ass. Glancing down, she caught sight of a vampire, dressed head to toe in a Goth getup, grinning toothily up at her as he continued to manhandle her behind.

"You have three seconds to remove your hand before I snap it off at the wrist," Tara warned quietly, her dark eyes flashing dangerously.

"Shut up and dance, bitch," the vampire retorted uncaringly. He squeezed Tara's ass harder and Tara retaliated by lashing out with her heeled foot, intending on driving the sharp heel of her shoe deep into the cavity of the vampire's chest.

Her heel never managed to find its target though. The vampire revealed his considerable age over Tara as he caught her leg mid-swing and used it to throw Tara across the room.

Tara would have crashed headlong into a table situated near the bar had Eric not had blurred over to her and plucked her gallantly out of the air with gentle arms. He smiled winsomely at her when she muttered a reluctant thanks.

Pam, on the other hand, had zipped up to the troublemaking vampire and was currently holding him by his throat as she pinned him hard against the pole Tara had involuntarily vacated. The incendiary look in Pam's electric blue eyes was both terrifying and palpable and despite his earlier bravado, the male vampire now shrank under the blonde's furious gaze.

"Need I remind you that this is a bar, _not_ a petting zoo," Pam prompted. Her voice was low and her tone utterly dangerous as she bore cold glacial blue eyes into the vampire that had _dared_ touch Tara. "You can look, but you _cannot_, _will not_, touch my employees." Pam's fingers tightened around the male vampire's throat like ribbons of steel. "Do. You. Understand?" Each word was punctuated with a squeeze to the male vampire's rapidly bruising throat.

The nameless vampire nodded frantically, his hands fumbling clumsily over Pam's as he tried to pry her fingers off of his throat but to no avail. He may have been older than Tara but Pam was older than him. And she was incensed to boot; anger wafted off her in waves and the expression on her face chilled him to the core. Pam looked like she would enjoy nothing more than to strip the skin from his bones and then proceed to break each and every one of those bones. Slowly.

"Get the _fuck_ out of my bar," Pam hissed as she released the iron-clad hold she had on the male vampire. He fell onto the floor in an unceremonious heap, clutching at his mangled throat as he eyed Pam insolently.

"Allow me to take out the trash," Eric offered solicitously when the male vampire didn't move fast enough for Pam's liking. "I have to leave anyway. There are matters to which I must attend." He set Tara down next to Pam, grabbed the unwanted vampire by the collar of his leather vest and dragged him across the floor in a blatant show of humiliation.

The patrons of Fangtasia watched quietly as Eric hauled the male vampire out. A quiet sort of hush had descended on the bar upon the ruckus but at Pam's raised eyebrow, everybody quickly busied themselves and soon the bar had resumed back to normalcy, save for the low buzz of gossip regarding the unfortunate incident.

Pam turned to Tara who standing quietly by her side, an odd string of emotions flitting across her face. After scanning a critical eye down the length of her progeny's body to ensure no damage had been inflicted on her, she reached up and tucked an errant strand of raven-black hair behind Tara's ear before dropping her hand back down. "You're done for the night," Pam dismissed her quietly. There was an ominous quality to the blonde's voice that raised warning flags at the back of Tara's mind but Pam's poker-face revealed nothing to the young vampire. "Put some clothes on," she added dryly before she made her way back up the stage.

Tara watched as her maker walked away, wondering how an exuberant night had so very quickly turned to shit.

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"You are forbidden to dance from now on," Pam declared conclusively as she waltzed into the office to find Tara on the couch, hunched over a book, a Tru Blood half unfinished at her feet. The young vampire had changed into a simple black and white raglan t-shirt and cargo pants. Her feet were bare and her face was scrubbed clean of makeup. She looked disconcertingly human and innocent.

"What?!" Tara was up in a flash, her eyes glowing with mutiny. She tossed the book onto the couch and glared up at her maker. "Why?"

"Because I said so," Pam said, her tone flat and unyielding. She moved to bypass Tara only to have her progeny block her way. "Did you want something?" she drawled, an eyebrow already hiking up before she completed the question.

"Yeah, I want something. An explanation," Tara replied shortly. She sent her arms akimbo as she stared down her maker, her coffee stained eyes never leaving Pam's face.

"I don't have to explain anything to you," Pam responded dryly. She edged around Tara and sat on the edge of the desk and proceeded to take out her earrings.

"What happened with that asshole wasn't my fault!" Tara huffed out. "It's not like I told him to grab my ass or nothin'."

"Oh really?" Pam turned a winter-blue gaze onto Tara, her eyes flashing dangerously with an emotion the younger vampire couldn't quite decipher. "I think that the sight of you rubbing yourself up and down the pole like a fuckin' cat in heat was invitation enough."

"Are you _jealous_?" Tara asked incredulously, her eyes going wide with the prospect.

Pam arched an amused eyebrow in her progeny's direction. "Don't flatter yourself, doll." She deposited the earrings into the ornate jewelry box next to her then made her way behind the desk where a stack of receipts lay waiting. "Make yourself useful and leave me alone," she added tartly as she dropped into the chair and pulled a calculator towards her.

"Oh no, you're not going to get away with it that easily," Tara retorted with a snort. She sidled up to the front of the desk, braced her hands on the sturdy wooden surface and leaned forward slightly so that she was almost nose to nose with her maker. "Tell me what you're really thinkin'," she breathed out, her voice simultaneously probing and seductive.

"I'm _thinkin'_ that I really want you out of this goddamn office," Pam snarked. She leaned back into the chair and made a show of tapping her heel against the floor.

Tara straightened, a small smile playing about her lips. "Fine," she said, her voice overtly cheery. "I'll just go then." She walked languidly over to the office door then paused to throw a wicked grin over her shoulder. "Maybe I'll go and find the vamp you threw out and see if he's up for a quick fuck in the back of my…"

Tara didn't have the chance to finish that sentence because Pam was up and out from behind her desk in a blink of an eye. She pinned Tara to the closed door, her fingers closing over Tara's wrists in an unmistakable act of possession.

"You are _mine_," Pam snarled, her voice brooking no argument. She pressed her body hard against Tara's and used the grip she had on her progeny's wrists to lift her arms up over her head in a display of domineering control. "You belong to _me_," she continued her voice raspy with rage and possessiveness.

Tara moaned at the feel of Pam pressing up against her, the scent of apples and vanilla washing over her senses like a euphoric cloud. Though technically impossible considering their status as vampires, Tara swore that there was a thick wall of heat generating between them. It enveloped the pair, made the air crackle with electricity.

"Took you fuckin' long enough," Tara whispered, her voice oozing satisfaction. Whilst she wasn't quite comfortable being so openly claimed by another, she knew that she had just as much hold over Pam, which leveled the playing field. "As long as you're mine too," she husked as she stared hard into Pam's eyes, easily drowning herself in those azure blue depths. Then, without warning, she sent a wave of burning desire to streak down the bond.

Pam almost keeled over backwards as the almost primal force of Tara's passion slammed into her end of the bond. She gasped needlessly as her progeny's lust and desire for her spread through her body like wildfire, sizzling every nerve ending it touched.

The blonde steadied herself by sucking in a needless breath. Then she closed the distance between herself and Tara and brushed her lips against her progeny's in an achingly tender manner that made Tara's bones melt and her knees to quiver. The contact was borderline unbearable; it felt like too much and too little all at once.

Just as suddenly as it began, Pam broke the kiss. Then, in an act that was a sharp contrast to the loving kiss, Pam let her fangs protract before she sank them into the juncture between Tara's neck and shoulder, claiming Tara and marking her as hers.

**TBC**

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**A/N 2 –** By the power of Google, I give to you the translations of these two Swedish terms:

_**Mitt barn**_ – my child

_**Fader**_ - father


	3. Chapter 3 – Flicker

**A/N** – Firstly, thank you to those who took the time to not only read my story but to leave feedback and comments. I appreciate the support. Secondly, this chapter is like crazy long and I apologize. My muse sorta just took it outta my hands and ran away with it. I really hope it doesn't bore. Happy reading!

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**Chapter 3 – Flicker**

"_I may not be your first love, first kiss, first sight or first date. I'm not in this to be your first anything…I just want to be your last."_ – Anonymous

* * *

Maker and progeny would never forget that fateful night, the night where Pam verbally, officially, pronounced Tara as hers and then sought to drive the point home by marking her with her fangs. The moment had been etched into their memories, stamped across their hearts and tattooed on their souls.

Pam had bitten deeply, mercilessly, without a shred of hesitation. She made Tara ride the fine line of pleasure and pain as she branded her future lover with her teeth, mouth and tongue. Pam had infused her veins with Tara's blood, just as her blood infused Tara's. They were now connected, forever and always.

The bite Pam had bequeathed on her, though fully healed, continued to throb like phantom pulse beneath Tara's ebony skin. The young vampire knew that the act had been significant, deliberate, a blatant mark of ownership. There was no going back, no undoing what transpired between them. Pam had _claimed_ her as hers.

They were now bonded in more ways than one. No longer were they simply tied by the strings of the maker/progeny bond. No. They were now also tethered by the threads of their hearts and souls. It was binding, irreversible, permanent.

To betray the other was to betray the bond.

The thing between them was confused though. It wanted to mature into a full-blown flame, wanted to grow multiple tongues of fire that would dance and sway and lick heat over maker and progeny. It wanted to bathe both vampires in warmth. But it was being denied; Pam would douse the flicker of heat and light the minute things became too hot between her and Tara.

The bond between Pam and Tara was similarly perplexed. It writhed miserably between its charges, alternating between being discombobulated to peeved that one half of the party was putting such a damper on the development of their budding relationship.

Something was going to have to give sooner or later. Because whilst Pam was exercising strict control over her impulses, Tara's patience and restraint was reaching its breaking point…

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The atmosphere in the basement was charged, electric, crackling like static. The smell of arousal was also heavy in the air, a thick, heady fragrance that would have put the most seductive of perfumes to shame. Lingering strands of apples and vanilla and oranges and dark chocolate mingled amongst the cloud of arousal, adding to its potency.

Pam was sequestered on the bottom step, the top of her pink tracksuit half-unzipped, revealing a generous hint of cleavage. Straddling her was Tara, clad merely in a long-sleeved deep green Henley shirt and a pair of black silk boxers. Her head was thrown back, her thick sable hair cascading down her back in loose, carefree waves as Pam suckled on the juncture between her neck and shoulder, tongue laving over the bite of ownership she had put on her progeny.

"Pam," Tara panted as she gripped the blonde's shoulder, nails digging into the cotton material of the blonde's top. She shuddered when Pam's teeth scraped teasingly along the vulnerable softness of her flesh. "Pamela."

Pam paused in her administrations, the sound of her full name falling like a devout prayer from Tara's lips foreign but not unwelcomed. She pressed a lingering kiss to the bite, knowing exactly where her fangs had marked Tara's skin even though the wound was now long healed. Then she pulled back to look into Tara's eyes, which were pitch black from arousal, her irises dilated with desire.

"We should go to ground," Pam whispered, her naturally husky tone hoarse with passion. She reached out and stroked long fingers down Tara's cheek, smiling indulgently when her progeny instinctively leaned into her touch.

"We _are_ underground," Tara sassed audaciously, her own voice no louder than a rough rasp. She pushed her cheek further into Pam's fingers, sighing contently when the blonde caressed her soft ebony skin in response.

"Cheeky," Pam admonished gently. She leaned forward and brushed her kiss-swollen lips against Tara's. "Time for bed, s_chätzlein_." She stood, bringing Tara up with her and bit back a moan when Tara immediately wrapped her legs around her, effectively pressing her very wet center against her abdomen. The blonde's eyes slid shut of their own accord and an intense look of concentration dropped onto the features of her face as she sought for a measure of self-control. "Bed," she managed to rasp when her eyes reopened.

Tara's own dark chocolate eyes lit up like a Christmas tree at the prospect.

"_Separate_ coffins," Pam emphasized, arching an eyebrow at the vampire in her arms.

Tara's shoulders physically drooped and she dropped her head despondently onto Pam's shoulder, sighing in frustrating. "Cock blocker," she mumbled. She bit petulantly at the sliver of exposed skin peeking out from the collar of Pam's top, making her displeasure known.

"You don't have a cock," Pam drawled, her voice dry with amusement. She suppressed a shudder at the feel of Tara's teeth sinking gently into the soft flesh between her neck and shoulder then shifted her progeny slightly in her arms. "Or is there something you're not telling me?"

Tara smiled into Pam's neck. She tilted her head to press a kiss to the underside of Pam's jaw before pulling back a little to look into her maker's sapphire blue gaze. "Naw. I'm all woman."

"I've noticed," Pam murmured, slanting an appreciative gaze down to Tara's generous chest. Then she sighed and gave herself a mental shake. "Bed," she repeated firmly as she began walking them towards Tara's coffin.

"Nooo…" Tara whined. She locked her legs tighter around Pam. "Kiss me again," she begged, her voice a breathy sigh. She zeroed in for Pam's lips with her own, then huffed in annoyance when Pam turned her head away, causing Tara's lips to land on her cheek instead.

Pam chuckled lowly at Tara's disgruntlement, highly amused that her progeny was making no qualms about masking her disappointment known. When Tara's lower lip jutted out in an exaggerated pout, Pam only managed to resist pacifying the young vampire for all of two seconds before she gave in and turned back around, indulging in another sweet, lingering kiss.

"Enough for tonight," Pam murmured against Tara's sweet cocoa mouth, her cool breath sending teasing strands of apples and vanilla to invade Tara's senses. Immediately, the young vampire's hormones were sent into a tizzy and Tara couldn't help but grip the back of Pam's neck as she tried to entice her maker into another lip-bruising kiss.

"No." Pam's voice was gentle but firm. "Dawn is approaching and we've had a busy night tonight. You need to sleep."

"I ain't tired," Tara grumbled, petulance thick in her voice. She folded her arms across her chest and scowled, an annoyed frown creasing the space between her eyes.

"So stubborn," Pam hummed as she reached out to smooth back an errant lock of onyx hair from Tara's face, her other arm effortlessly holding Tara's weight from its snug position under her ass. "So willful." The note of pride and admiration was heavy in the blonde's husky lilt.

"I wouldn't have to be so _stubborn_ and _willful_ if you would give me more than just a kiss goodnight," Tara groused as she pressed her center deliberately against Pam's sculpted abdomen in a pitiful attempt to stave off the throbbing at the apex of her thighs. She peered grouchily up at the blonde, exasperation clouding the chocolate of her eyes. "_Why_ do you keep torturing us?"

The feel of Tara's arousal, so blatant and unashamed against her stomach even through the thin material of her progeny's boxers _and_ her own tracksuit top was too much for Pam. She dropped her progeny back onto her feet, simultaneously relieved and disappointed by the small distance she put between them. She zipped up her top and slipped back behind her cool exterior, needing it to regain her self-control.

"Did you really think that just because I claimed you as mine and pledged to be yours that my legs were just going to _magically_ spread open for you?" Pam's arms went akimbo as she arched an unimpressed eyebrow at Tara.

Tara's mental equilibrium was momentarily scrambled as it fought to adjust to Pam's sudden aloofness. "That's not what I meant," Tara began, her voice soft and laced with caution. She gazed up at her maker. "It's just…" she paused as she sorted through her thoughts and as an added precaution, tapped briefly into the bond. Pam wasn't outright angry but she wasn't a plateful of sunshine either. "Every time things get heated between us, you…you put a stop to it before things progress further." The young vampire's brows furrowed as she tried to cotton onto Pam's train of thought regarding the matter. "Is it me?" she asked finally, her bottom lip sliding into her mouth as she contemplated the theory. "Did I…"

"No," Pam cut her off. The pangs of confusion and hurt coursing from Tara's end of the bond to the blonde were jarring and immediately she reached out to take one of Tara's hands in her own. "No," she repeated, her voice beseeching as she implored Tara with her eyes to believe her.

"Then what is it?" Tara was puzzled. She was also curious, truly curious to understand why Pam was putting off the physical aspect of their relationship. When Pam had marked her with her fangs, effectively claiming her as hers, Tara had thought that that meant that they could explore _every_ avenue available to a person who was in a relationship. But instead, beyond kisses and the occasional heated make out session, Pam had always put a stop to their romantic trysts when things became too hot and heavy.

Pam sighed and dropped Tara's hand so she could backtrack to lean against one of the columns supporting the basement's ceiling. She raked a hand through her loose golden-blonde hair as she sifted through the turmoil in her head.

"You deserve more," she explained finally, her voice quiet with an emotion that Tara couldn't quite identify.

Now Tara was definitely lost at sea. She hunkered down on top of her closed coffin and crossed her legs. "More what?" She cocked her head as she glanced up at Pam, trying to find some sort of sign that would allow her to decipher Pam's cryptic explanation.

Pam pursed her lips as she tried to vocalize her thoughts. Between them, the bond squirmed uncomfortably, a little upset by the weighty emotions radiating down from Pam's end and the confusion from Tara's.

"I don't need more," Tara spoke again when Pam continued to remain silent. She trained a coffee stained look onto the blonde's face. "I have you." The utter sincerity of her statement zipped down the bond to bat at Pam and it was so pure and honest that the blonde had to fight off a wave of bloody tears that threatened to rim her eyes red.

"Tara," Pam started, her voice soft as she looked at her progeny with an unreadable expression. "You're not some random, nameless fuck I take into my office to finger into orgasm." Her lips couldn't help but curve in amusement when her progeny sent a lightning bolt of undiluted jealousy to trample down the bond. A deep scowl followed, carving a dangerous path across Tara's kiss-swollen lips as she made it known to Pam that hearing about the blonde's past sexcapades were _not_ well received. Pam smirked slightly at Tara's ire, pleased that her future lover felt strongly enough about her to indulge in a fit of jealousy.

"You are _mine_ and you deserve to be treated as such," she went on. Pam made a face when she realized just how sappy she sounded but then shrugged. This was Tara. Tara deserved more than just a quick fuck. "I want to do right by you," she finished, her azure blue gaze boring into fathomless pools of dark chocolate brown.

Understanding dawned in Tara's eyes. She hopped off the coffin and blurred up to Pam. She reached up and took the blonde's face in her hands, cradling Pam's head like the most precious of treasure. "Slow," she revealed as she willingly lost herself into the blue of her maker's intense gaze. "You want to take things slow."

Pam nodded reluctantly, feeling a little embarrassed by her rather old-fashioned approach to their relationship but Tara was special to her. Very few people had managed to worm their way into her heart and fewer managed to enchant her the way Tara did. "Let me court you before I bring you to bed," she requested, her voice husky with promise, her Southern lilt slipping into a slightly accented tone.

"Court?" Tara echoed, a teasing smile lifting the corner of her lips.

Pam lifted a pale eyebrow at Tara's gentle amusement. "I believe you young'uns call it 'dating'," she drawled dispassionately. Her haughty look lasted scant seconds before it faded and her eyes took on a faraway expression as she recalled her human life. Pam grew up in an era where gestures of romance and tokens of love were commonplace. The era she lived her human years in conditioned her to woo and be wooed though she had never wanted nor needed to put those practices into use for many decades. Until Tara.

Deep affection and unadulterated love flowed from Tara to Pam through the bond causing both maker and progeny to share soft smiles. It was too early to say the words but that didn't mean that they didn't feel the emotion. Tara leaned in and dropped the softest of kisses to Pam's lips, her eyes shining with devotion.

"Okay."

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"Where are we going?" Pam drawled, purposefully keeping her voice indifferent though internally she was curious as hell. She was also a little surprised that Tara had taken the initiative on the courtship/dating aspect of their relationship before Pam. Surprised, but nonetheless delighted. She cast a sidelong glance at Tara before she returned to savoring the wind blowing against her face through the rolled down window.

Tara shot Pam a sly smile, having felt the nudge of impatience and curiosity floating down from the blonde's end of the bond. "Patience is a virtue," she replied in a sing-song voice, chuckling when Pam turned back to glare holes into the side of her head. "How 'bout some music, huh?"

She reached down and fiddled with the knob of the stereo, flicking through a few channels before a familiar tune caused her to hum with satisfaction. She returned her hand to the steering wheel, gently drumming fingers against it as the low, almost mournful strains of a violin, accompanied seconds later by a piano drifted out from the speakers.

_Say it's true  
There's nothing like me and you_

Pam turned a contemplative gaze onto the stereo as the words registered with her. She slid another glance at Tara, who looked so carefree in her black and purple raglan t-shirt and faded blue denim jeans. Her hair was pulled back in a loose ponytail and she was idly whistling along to the song as she concentrated on the road. A fierce flash of longing and affection burst out from Pam but she made no attempts to hide it as she continued to watch her progeny.

_I'm not alone,  
Tell me you feel it too_

Tara could feel Pam's eyes on her, felt the warm fuzzies emanating down from the blonde's end of the bond but chose not to comment. Instead, she let the music wash over her even as Pam's cerulean blue gaze began enticing the heat in her belly to grow into flames.

_And I would runaway  
I would runaway, yeah  
I would run away  
I would run away with you_

Pam observed Tara, a small smile lifting the corner of her full lips as she watched her progeny lose herself in the simple joys of driving down an open road to a good song. Unable to resist, she reached out and drew back a lock of raven hair that had fallen out of Tara's ponytail. Her smile widened slightly when Tara turned briefly to bestow upon her a crooked grin, one that the young vampire reserved only for the blonde.

'_Cause I have fallen in love  
With you, no never…  
I'm never gonna stop falling in love with you_

Cobalt blue eyes locked onto swirls of rich dark chocolate, the verses of the song striking a deep chord within them. Tara offered Pam another small smile, one filled with complete adoration before she returned her eyes to the road.

"_Close the door,"_ Tara sang along, her voice a soft alto. A bashful grin crawled across her face when she felt a pang of surprise from Pam via the bond. "_Lay down upon the floor. And by candlelight, make love to me through the night…"_

Tara's voice faltered when she realized the depth of the meaning of the words she was singing. She could also _feel_ Pam grinning wickedly at her and if she could have, she would have blushed furiously. Keeping her eyes glued to the road, she reached down to the stereo again, mumbling something about "an upbeat tune."

_You are the best thing  
That's ever been mine_

"Change it!" Pam barked, her authoritative tone cutting right through the sudden wall of sexual tension permeating the interior of Tara's truck.

Tara smirked but did as requested, knowing that Jessica's consistent wailing of Taylor Swift's songs had permanently put the artist in Pam's bad books. She liked the lyrics of that song though, fleeting as they were in her truck. Pam _was_ the best thing she could call hers.

_If you'll be my soft and sweet  
I'll be your strong and steady_

"_You be my glass of wine,"_ Tara sang, slanting a mischievous glance at Pam. "_I'll be your shot of whiskey."_

Pam caught the look and arched a pale eyebrow but she was genuinely amused and rather touched at being so sweetly serenaded.

"_You be my sunny day, I'll be your shade tree. You be my honeysuckle, I'll be your honey bee."_

"I didn't know you could sing," Pam interrupted quietly. The thoughtful expression returned to her face and she gazed pensively at her progeny. "What else don't I know about you?"

Tara reached out to capture one of Pam's hands. Lifting it to her lips, she ghosted a kiss over the blonde's knuckles. "Patience," she murmured around her preoccupied lips. "We have eternity to learn about each other."

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"I like the way the sand feels beneath my feet," Tara offered quietly as they strolled down Holly Beach, their respective shoes and sandals dangling loosely from their fingers. The beach was quiet given the time of night and for that Tara was grateful. She wanted to achieve that romantic moonlit walk on the beach and she wanted to be able to walk along the shoreline with Pam without an audience. So far, fate was on her side: the moon was big and bright against a star-studded sky, illuminating the beach in slivers of silver-white. The tide was low, waves lapping gently onto the beach before retreating calmly back into the ocean. And the beach was blissfully devoid of human life.

Pam also seemed to be enjoying herself immensely, which was a huge bonus for Tara. When she initially thought of where to take her maker on a date, she had been rather flummoxed. It wasn't like Tara could take Pam to a 5-star restaurant or a picnic in the park. The blonde also wasn't one for movies so the cinema was out. Grasping at straws, Tara almost booked tickets for the opera but then quickly dismissed the option. The young vampire couldn't think of anything more boring and she knew that if she didn't enjoy it, Pam wouldn't either because she would feel Tara's ennui. The ebony skinned vampire was almost at her wits end about where to take Pam when the idea of walking along the beach hit her.

Now seeing Pam, head tilted back to enjoy the wash of the salty breeze over her face whilst her loose golden-blonde hair danced gently about her face, Tara knew she had made the right decision. Seeing Pam so uninhibited and relaxed made the four plus hour drive worth every minute.

"Hey, ya hungry?" When Pam opened her eyes to reveal an electric blue gaze, Tara felt her knees weaken a little. She dug her bare toes into the sand and swallowed around a lump in her throat. "I packed some _Tru Blood_," she explained, her voice sounding suspiciously hoarse to her ears. "I was trying to go for a picnic on the beach but since our choice of nourishment is so limited…" she shrugged helplessly.

Pam smiled, an enigmatic smile that instantly piqued Tara's interest. "What?" she demanded, slightly miffed at being left out of the loop.

Pam shook her head, though not before she graced Tara with another Mona Lisa smile. "I'm not hungry, but thank you." She closed the distance between them and reached up to tuck two fingers under Tara's chin. Lifting her head, she then bent to brush her lips against Tara's, sighing softly when the flavors of oranges and dark chocolate wafted between her parted lips to coat her tongue. "I like the way you taste." Her voice had dropped several registers at the admission, her azure blue eyes almost glowing as she stared at her progeny.

"Y-you do?" Tara mentally chided herself for her stutter but the scent of Pam, of apples and vanilla curling around her like wisps of silk was making her lightheaded.

Pam nodded, smirking slightly at the glazed look in Tara's eyes.

Tara gave herself a mental shake, clearing away the aphrodisiac cloud, courtesy of Pam, from her mind. "What do I taste like?" she prompted, her voice one register shy of sounding cocky.

"Mine." Pam's azure blue eyes blazed into Tara's dark chocolate ones and Tara's cockiness fled as she felt her knees knock together in response to Pam's possessive reply.

"I also like the way you smell," Pam continued, purring like jungle cat as she took a deliberate sniff. "Oranges," she murmured. She bent and licked at the side of Tara's neck, directly over where her pulse would have been hammering a wild, erratic beat had she been human. "Dark chocolate," she continued, her voice a seductive caress over Tara's skin. "Delectable," she growled as she pressed a kiss to Tara's neck, humming happily as her progeny's taste and scent enveloped her.

"Okay." Tara backpedaled, almost losing her balance as she fought to clear the fog from her brain. "Okay," she reiterated, her voice rough with desire. She exhaled raggedly as she stared hungrily up at Pam, who in turn was eyeing at her like she wanted nothing more than to rip Tara's clothes from her body. The young vampire cinched her jaw. "Let's move this conversation back into PG territory before I do something that'll get us both arrested." She turned her head away from Pam, sucking in needless breaths of salty air in an attempt to mask the blonde's intoxicating aroma that were making her hormones whiz about in a drunken fashion.

Pam chortled and sidled up behind Tara. She dropped her sandals onto the sand and wrapped her arms around her progeny from behind. Propping her chin on Tara's shoulder, she smiled when Tara instinctively leaned back against her, her entire posture growing slack and relaxed. "Thank you for tonight." The blonde's voice was no louder than a soft burr.

Tara placed her hands over the ones Pam had resting on her stomach. Leaning back into Pam, she cherished the close proximity of their bodies, reveled in the exultant feelings bouncing back and forth between them through the bond. She was content, happy, two emotions that she hadn't been privy to for a long time. She turned just long enough to drop a kiss to the side of Pam's jaw.

"You're welcome."

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Pam had Tara pinned up against the side of her car, nuzzling into her neck as she did so. She nosed aside the collar of her progeny's t-shirt, revealing smooth ebony skin that was just _begging_ to be kissed. She pressed plump lips to the juncture between Tara's neck and shoulder, then parted them to allow the tip of her tongue to peek out.

Tara moaned when she felt the flat of Pam's tongue drag across her clavicle. She tightened the grip she had on Pam's thick golden-blonde hair, forcibly pushing Pam's face further into her shoulder. The blonde retaliated by biting down gently, her fangs not quite piercing the soft flesh but worrying it nevertheless.

Tara was burning up; her body feverish with arousal. She relaxed the iron-clad grip she had on Pam's hair only to cup the back of the blonde's head. Guiding Pam's face back to face hers, she recaptured her maker's lips, moaning ardently into Pam's mouth as the flavors of apples and vanilla infiltrated her taste buds. Needing more, she sucked down on Pam's lower lip, her own fangs grazing the kiss-swollen flesh as she suckled lingering strands of apples and vanilla into her mouth.

Pam pressed her front flush against Tara's, needing to feel Tara's body against her own. Her head was cloudy with desire, the bond between them saturated with need and want. She reached up and stroked loving fingers down the side of Tara's face, marveling at the softness she found. She groaned in aggravation when she felt a playful hand drop onto her inner thigh and began dragging teasing fingers upwards.

"No," she mumbled into Tara's mouth. She nipped warningly at Tara's lower lip when the young vampire continued to track her fingers closer to the incessant throbbing between her legs. "Naughty," she murmured, reaching down to pluck Tara's hand from her thigh.

Tara sighed in frustration and dropped her head back onto the roof of the car, uncaring that it connected with a rather unpleasant thump. "Fuckin' tease," she grumbled as she peered blearily at Pam. "You can't just wear a miniskirt that _short_ and expect me to behave." She eyed the piece of clothing with disdain for it hid what she so desperately wanted to see, touch, _taste_.

Pam smirked. Retracting her fangs, she leaned forward to press her lips to Tara's chin. "Patience," she whispered, her voice husky with dark promise. She moved forward a fraction, effectively pressing their breasts up against each other. "It'll be worth it."

Tara growled at the feel of Pam's breasts pressed so intimately against her own. She lurched forward and reached up to grip at the blonde's shoulders intending to reverse their positions but Pam batted her hands away and shoved Tara back up against the car. The sudden force of Tara's back hitting the car caused a window to crack and the car to slid away from the pavement a good three inches.

"Jesus," Tara choked out as Pam bore down on her, azure blue eyes fiery with lust. The blonde's aggressive actions sent her arousal spiking to dangerous level and the throbbing between her legs to pulse maddeningly. "No need to go all cavewoman on me, Barbie."

Pam responded to that quip by reaching out to squeeze one of Tara's breasts. "Mine," she growled. She manhandled the plump flesh in her hand even as she surged forward and ravished Tara's lips with her own. "Say it," she demanded, when she pulled back, her voice one decibel just shy of a snarl.

"Yours," Tara gasped as Pam continued to palm her breast through her t-shirt. She reached up and buried her hands into thick golden-blonde hair, fingers tangling around the silky-strands. Tilting her head up, she sought Pam's lips, sighing when Pam reciprocated and initiated a slow, deep kiss that made her toes curl.

"We should go inside," Pam mumbled minutes later. Her lips were still attached to Tara's and she had to vocalize her musings around a deliciously sweet kiss that threatened to send her eyes rolling to the back of her head.

"Inside?" her progeny parroted stupidly as Pam continued to assault her mouth with full lips that tasted like ambrosia.

"The house," Pam murmured distractedly. She tilted her head and slanted her mouth over Tara's, drawing in the taste of oranges and dark chocolate. A pale hand reached up to lay purchase on Tara's cheek, the tips of her fingers idly tracing imaginary lines over the soft ebony skin.

"House?" Tara was trying valiantly to cotton on to the stilted conversation but her brain was so soaked with the taste and smell of Pam that even simple coherent thought was struggle. When Pam angled her head and began dragging kisses down the side of her jaw, Tara forced eyes that were heavily lidded with desire, open. She took in the residence before her, the reason for their current location suddenly hitting her like a freight train.

"Your house," she said, her voice trembling as Pam nuzzled her nose into that sensitive spot behind her ear.

"Umm hmm," was Pam's noncommittal reply. She drew Tara's earlobe into her mouth and bit at the vulnerable flesh, eliciting a wanton moan from Tara.

"You…have a…pink roof," Tara managed to stutter between breathy sighs and drawn out moans as she made a conscious effort to take in her surroundings.

"Pastel pink," Pam corrected around a mouthful of Tara's skin. She licked at flesh trapped between her front teeth, delighting at the texture and flavor.

"…white picket fences," Tara gasped as Pam bit down onto her shoulder through the thin cotton material of her t-shirt.

"Keeps the neighbors out," Pam deadpanned. She sank her teeth into the side of Tara's neck, moaning as the taste of oranges and dark chocolate bombarded her mouth.

Tara squirmed and whimpered under Pam's administrations but then tapped into a hidden reserve of self-control. She used the hand that was still nestled in Pam's hair to card her fingers through the silky soft strands before gripping a handful of it to yank Pam's head back.

Pam arched a questioning eyebrow at Tara's sudden act of forcefulness. Tara matched Pam's hiked eyebrow with one of her own.

"Ya gotta stop with the biting," she chided in a playful tone as she shook her head to clear away the fog of arousal from her eyes. "I'm starting to think you have a fetish."

"We're _vampires_," Pam drawled as Tara released the grip she had on her hair. "Biting is an inherent part of our nature." She eyed Tara's neck and contemplated resuming using Tara's shoulder as a chew toy but from the way her progeny's dark eyes were blown from arousal, her body shaking slightly and her legs clenching in a pitiful effort to quell the ache between her legs, the blonde knew that Tara was one nibble short of coming apart at the seams. She took a deliberate step back, allowing the distance between their bodies to cool the fire between them.

"Dawn's approaching," Pam observed quietly, casting a look at the midnight stained sky, "Let's go to bed." She held out a hand, smiling softly when Tara immediately took it, her strong fingers curling gently around Pam's own.

"This is your home?" Tara inquired quietly as Pam led them up to the front door.

"It's yours too," Pam replied and she fished out a set of keys from her jacket pocket.

"It is?" Tara's voice was stunned, the expression on her face solidifying her shock and surprise at Pam's easy response.

Pam smiled as she keyed the door open. She turned, focused an adoring cerulean blue gaze at Tara and plucked a key from the key ring in her hands only to press the cool metal object into Tara's palm.

"Welcome home, Tara."

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"Stop looking at me like that," Pam murmured as they stood in front of the maitre d' stand. The blonde squirmed a little, the feel of Tara's hungry stare and the sharp stabs of arousal and lust whizzing down from Tara's end of the bond making her so very wet under her dress.

Tara ignored Pam's request as she roamed ravenous eyes down her maker's body. Pam was clad in a Prussian blue silk backless halter dress that fell just below her knees. The dress accented the blonde's perfect figure, threw sharp focus to the deep blue of her eyes and made Tara drool by exposing the flawless alabaster canvas that was the skin of her back. She sent another frisson of longing down the bond, almost moaning with want.

"Focus," Pam admonished gently, casting a long-suffering look at Tara.

Tara drew in a near silent and needless breath. Forcibly dragging her eyes away from the exquisiteness that was Pam, she made a point of taking in her surroundings. The restaurant's name stenciled boldly on the wall behind the maitre d' immediately caught her eye and her lips twisted.

"_Blood_ and Dine?" She snickered under her breath.

"Puns were regarded as the highest form of humor back in the day." Pam's tone was arch though she was only slightly miffed by her progeny's amusement.

Tara opened her mouth to retort but was interrupted by the maitre d' announcing Pam's name.

"Ms. Swynford de Beaufort?" A willowy man, dressed impeccably in a traditional tuxedo appeared before them. At Pam's nod, he picked up two menus from behind the stand and extended a hand towards the dining room. "If you'll follow me, ladies."

"This is some fancy shit," Tara mumbled as she followed slightly behind Pam. She took in the candlelit and rose-adorned tables, the muted yellow-gold lighting blanketing the room and the soft strains of a piano interlude drifting gently from strategically placed speakers. Then the gentle swish of Pam's dress covered ass caught the corner of her eye and she was distracted all over again.

Pam resisted rolling her cerulean blue eyes as the weight of Tara's unrelenting stare came to rest on her posterior. Shaking her head in exasperation, she quickly took a seat that the maitre d' pulled out for her, pleased that he had led them to a corner table near the back of the room, giving them an illusion of privacy.

The maitre d' sat Tara down and handed them their menus. "A waiter will be by shortly to take your order." With a graceful bow to them, he turned and left.

"We are going to have to teach you the fine art of discretion and self-control," Pam drawled dryly the minute they were alone. "I do not appreciate being looked at like a piece of meat."

"Then wear a potato sack," Tara shot back. She then smiled, knowing that even clad in a potato sack she would still find Pam as enchanting and alluring.

"So disobedient," Pam murmured. She shook her head in gentle affection and opened her menu, scanning the items with an air of disinterest. From the top of the menu, she watched her progeny unobtrusively, patiently anticipating Tara's inevitable flabbergasted reaction to the menu with a small smile.

Three…two…

"Holy shit!"

Pam's smile grew at Tara's outburst. She took in Tara's sagged jaw, her saucer eyes and the stumped expression painting the beautiful features of her face.

"Blood _food_?" Tara exclaimed weakly as she trained a bewildered gaze down the menu. Then her eyes narrowed and her head shot back up. "This is what you were smiling about the other night at the beach, wasn't it?" Her tone was accusatory. "When I mentioned a picnic?"

Pam's azure blue eyes twinkled and she nodded. "Surprise."

Tara's eyes returned to the menu, shock still coursing throughout her body in waves. Appetizers, main courses, sides, _desserts_, it was just like any ordinary menu save for the fact that everything listed was made from blood. "How?" she finally asked, curiosity getting the better of her.

Pam shrugged. "It involves a finicky scientific process which holds no interest to me. It also requires the donors to consume nothing but that particular food or beverage for days on end." She bestowed Tara a winsome smile when her progeny's face scrunched up in sympathy. "They get paid handsomely of course."

"Of course," Tara reiterated softly. She scanned another glance down the menu, then balked when her eyes finally settled on the prices. "Pam…"

The bond jangled when Tara send down it a wave of insecurity and uncertainty. The feelings butted into Pam's end of the bond and she knew immediately where Tara's thoughts had wandered. She reached over the table and gently took her progeny's hand. "Hey," she said, her tone soft. When Tara lifted her head to lock fathomless pools of deep brown onto her azure blue gaze, she smiled. "Money is not an issue."

"But…"

"But nothing," Pam stated firmly. She squeezed the hand she held in her. "Let me pamper you," she implored.

Tara shifted in her seat, slightly uncomfortable with the prospect of being treated to such lavish indulgence. But she could never refused Pam anything, especially when Pam looked at her as she did now: with quiet devotion and open affection. She offered Pam a small smile and the blonde returned it with one of her own.

"So," Pam started, smoothly maneuvering the conversation back into safer waters. She gave Tara's hand another gentle squeeze before dropping it and leaning back into her seat. "What would you like?"

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"Did you enjoy tonight?" Pam inquired, her voice husky with desire as Tara dragged her lips down the column of her neck. The blonde was propped up against the doorframe of the front door, Tara draped over the front of her as they traded teasing caresses and soft kisses.

"Yup," Tara mumbled as she brushed her lips over Pam's throat. "Thank you," she continued as she whispered a kiss to the underside of her maker's jaw.

"You're welcome." Pam released an unnecessary breath, which came out in staggered puffs as Tara nipped playfully at her chin."I think it's high time I take you to bed," Pam declared softly as her fingers lingered over the zipper of Tara's little red dress. Her other hand couldn't help but run a course down the length of Tara's side, where her form fitting dress did a marvelous job of highlighting each dip and curve of her progeny's beautifully sculpted and mouthwatering body.

Tara froze then pulled back to look straight into Pam's eyes, which were at half-mast, her lids laden with want. "Will you make love to me?" she asked, her voice no louder than a breathy whisper. Her eyes were wide with anticipation and hope.

Pam nodded. "Until you see stars," she promised, her eyes growing dark with desire. She tugged playfully at the lip of the zipper of Tara's dress, her lips curving into a smile.

Tara smirked up at Pam. "Make it a galaxy," she challenged then shuddered when Pam's fingers traced the jut of her shoulder blade. Wetness pooled in her thong and she watched unapologetically as Pam's nostrils flared, having caught the heady fragrance of her arousal.

Pam returned her progeny's smug smile with a wicked grin that caused Tara's metaphorical breath to catch in her throat. "Done."

Sweeping Tara into her arms, she shut the door and vamp sped them up to the bedroom where she proceeded to make good on her promise.

**TBC**

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**A/N 2** – Translations according to Google:

**S**_**chätzlein**_ – my little treasure/honey/sweetheart (German)

Songs used (none of which belong to me, FYI):

_Runaway_ by The Corrs

_Mine_ by Taylor Swift (I had a fierce need to use this song in a happy context after Glee butchered its sweet and loving meaning by turning it into a goddamn _breakup_ song. I mean, they took out all the warm fuzzies and replaced it with sad fuzzies. *shakes head and scowls*)

_Honey Bee_ by Blake Shelton


	4. Chapter 4 – Ignite

**A/N** – Thank you, and I mean _thank you_, for leaving me such wonderful feedback. They are always appreciated and fun to read. Now, this chapter is like nine pages of sexy times. Therefore, I would suggest you venture in at your own discretion if you're in a public place like work or school. *grins* On a more somber note, if the Sapphic arts are not to your liking…well darlin' ya really took a wrong turn somewhere 'cuz this ship is all about women lovin' women. Happy reading!

* * *

**Chapter 4 – Ignite**

"_You must always be intoxicated. On wine, on poetry, on virtue or on love. But you must get drunk." – _Charles Baudelaire

* * *

Steady, steady, steady. That was how well Pam and Tara were doing. They thing between them was finally set aflame and burning at a steady pace. It was kept constant, fed and fueled by snippets of intimate conversations, entwined hands that seemed surgically attached to its mate, long, slow, deep kisses that made sparks fly and lingering hugs that emanated the most delicious heat.

Tara was reveling in their newfound closeness. Pam had opened up parts of herself that no one, not even Eric were privy to. She unlocked doors to the deepest, darkest chambers of her heart and soul and trusted Tara to breathe light into these chambers with patience, understanding and care. Each time Pam allowed Tara to knock down a wall, Tara would look up at Pam with unbridled veneration, as if she couldn't actually believe that Pam trusted her so.

Pam too, was cherishing every new memory she was making with Tara. Never one for sentiments, the blonde suddenly found great pleasure in performing acts found only in the sappiest of poems and love stories just to see the way Tara's eyes light up. She delighted in the way they were growing together, marveled at how at _peace_ Tara made her feel. And every time they touched, Pam felt like they were imprinting more of each other into each other's hearts and souls.

The bond between maker and progeny was overjoyed. It was almost full to bursting with happy feelings and couldn't process the rush of love, devotion, affection and adoration fast enough. It was happy its charges were happy, drunk on the fact that _they_ were drunk on each other…

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Jessica had teasingly called it their "honeymoon phase." Tara called it being whipped.

The young vampire couldn't get enough of Pam. Her intoxicating scent, her burning touch, her perfectly sculpted body, the sound of her voice after sex or the look of desire glazing the deep blue of her eyes whenever they landed on Tara.

It didn't matter that they had christened every square inch of Fangtasia, the office and the basement. It didn't matter that they subjected themselves to The Bleeds more days than one in their little suburban house because they couldn't stop fucking, tasting, kissing, touching.

Everything they did, every moment they shared, it wasn't enough. Tara shook her head in hopeless dismay as she took another drag of her cigarette, letting the smoke linger in her lungs before she released it back into the crisp autumn air in curls of grayish-white.

Whipped. That was how Tara regarded her situation. The only consolation was, she knew Pam felt exactly the same way.

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She missed her progeny's presence the second Tara had slipped out the backdoor for a quick break. The loneliness, the longing, it crashed into her like a tidal wave, unrelenting, furious and overwhelming.

Pam internally rolled her eyes. _'Pathetic_,' she sneered to herself as she scanned Fangtasia from her position on Eric's throne. For over a century, she had functioned and thrived on independence, letting not emotion nor attachments to people get in her way. Eric had been the exception of course, but he never tied her down or chained her tightly to him. He let her fly, let her spread her wings, only reining her in when she became careless or stared danger in the face too closely.

But now, this thing with Tara? It robbed her of her autonomy, her control, her self-reliance. She felt incomplete without Tara, empty, weak. But at the same time, her relationship with Tara invigorated her. It made her feel powerful, invincible, as if she could conquer the world with one hand tied behind her back. Being with Tara made her strong, made her bold.

A small smile graced Pam's full lips. She tapped into their bond and sent into it a snarl of emotions meant to say only one thing:

'_Come back to me.'_

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Tara shuddered as she was subjected to a cocktail of want, longing and desire. It burned throughout her body like well-aged wine, leaving her drunk on lust. Swallowing, she flicked away her cigarette and made her way back inside the bar, unable to resist the call of her maker, her lover, her everything.

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Pam watched with hooded eyes as Tara wound through the crowd, her liquid brown eyes locked intently onto Pam's stormy blue ones. Only a fool could have missed the fire radiating between the two, so bright and hot it burned.

Tara climbed up the podium steps and came to a stop by Pam's left. She lifted Pam's hand to her lips and brushed a lingering kiss across her maker's knuckles, leaving a trail of fire to lick down the blonde's veins.

"Hello, _**lover**_." Tara Southern lilt was awash with want as she drawled out the last word, purposely placing heavy emphasis on it. Her eyes were already dark with arousal, twin pits of palpable desire.

Pam returned the feverish gaze with a smoldering one of her own. "Do you want to leave?" The blonde's own Southern cadence was laced with just a touch of an accent, the betraying just how painfully aroused she was. She shot Tara a sinfully sultry look as she waited for an answer, her eyes electric with want.

"Yes," Tara growled, not even attempting to mask her need. She flashed Pam such a wanton, hungry look that the blonde's legs involuntarily clenched. "Yes."

"Ginger!"

The bleached blonde, who just happened to be in the vicinity of the podium, shrieked a little in surprise but steadied the mercifully empty tray perched on her upturned palm. She redirected her steps and made her way up to Pam.

"Yes, mistress?" Ginger's voice was meek, tremulous as she awaited either punishment or instruction.

"You're in charge. Call Eric if you need anything."

Then without so much as a "thank you" or a "goodbye", Pam wrapped strong, supple fingers around Tara's wrist and vamp sped them both out into the cool, crisp Louisiana night.

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"Where are we?" Tara questioned, confusion coloring her tone as Pam keyed open the front door to a sprawling two-storey mansion outside of Shreveport. The house was built in a colonial style with expansive windows, two thick buttresses bracketing the front entrance, a porch that wrapped all around the residence and sweeping grounds that seemed to blend into the woods surrounding the area.

"My place," Pam replied nonchalantly. She threw the door open with a flourish, stepped aside to let her progeny enter first, followed Tara, slammed shut the door, locked it then pressed Tara up against the wall.

"_Another_ one?"

"It was Eric's," Pam clarified. She took a deliberate sniff at Tara's neck, moaning when the scent of oranges and dark chocolate invaded her senses. "He recently transferred ownership to me. Us." She licked at the side of Tara's neck and growled. "Enough talk," Pam murmured, her voice a low, rough rasp. She captured Tara's lips in a slow, deep kiss that sang to the young vampire's soul.

Out of all the kinds of sex Tara had indulged in with Pam, slow and drawn out was by far her most favorite. Pam could be a beast in the bedroom, an absolute wildcat between the sheets. She could fuck hard, fast and dirty. She could do things with her tongue that made Tara orgasm multiple times in such quick succession that stars would inevitably fandango in front of her eyes. She introduced Tara to positions that the young vampire didn't think were anatomically possible before. Once she had subjected Tara to such an intense bout of sex that even with her rapid healing, the young vampire was found to be walking in a rather odd manner for the duration of the next night.

Pam had been seen in Fangtasia that night wearing the cockiest smirk.

Nevertheless, fast or slow, Pam rocked her world. But it was the latter that broke something in Tara, made her want to weep at the beauty of it all. When Pam went slow, it heightened every emotion, awakened every dormant feeling and fine-tuned every nerve in her body to an almost unbearable level. When they made love, the blonde had the unnerving ability to render Tara to a sobbing mess of pleasure, to bring her to the very precipice of climax only to draw her back and love her with her mouth, fingers and tongue until her progeny begged for mercy, for reprieve, for release.

Slow was the route Pam seemed to be taking tonight and Tara knew that her maker would spare her no mercy until the coming dawn. And maybe not even then.

Pam kissed Tara languidly, reverently. She let the taste of oranges and dark chocolate infiltrate her mouth, soak into her taste buds and caress her senses until there was nothing but Tara. Reaching up, she stroked long fingers down her progeny's cheek, relishing at the feel of silky soft skin.

Tara instinctively leaned into the touch and the new angle of the tilt of her head had Pam's full bottom lip sliding between her own. She sucked it into her mouth, drenching her tongue with the taste of apples and vanilla. She moaned as the flavor of Pam infused her mouth, a breathy sound that reverberated like mini shockwaves between them. Needing the blonde closer, she reached up with both hands and tangled her fingers into Pam's thick golden-blonde hair, the pads of her fingers delighting at the feel of the silky stands.

Pam returned Tara's moan with a guttural one of her own as she felt Tara's nails dig lightly into her scalp. Pressing her harder against the wall, she teased the seam of Tara's lips with quick flicks of her tongue, seeking entrance. When Tara opened her mouth, she slipped inside, her tongue happy to be in its second home. She greeted Tara's tongue with her own, the writhing muscles engaging in a battle for dominance before Pam let Tara win by gliding her tongue over Pam's. She retreated a little then, but only to reaffirm herself with the roof of Tara's mouth, the inside of her cheeks, the front of her teeth.

When Pam's tongue touched the spot that housed her currently hidden incisors, Tara's fangs instinctively dropped with a subtle click. It nicked the tip of Pam's tongue, causing a small dot of blood to starburst from the punctured skin. Tara's lips clamped down on the spot and sucked, drawing in the small speck of blood into her mouth. The young vampire released a low whimper of frustration when Pam pulled back slightly, their lips parting with an audible smack.

"Easy," Pam whispered. She turned and ghosted a kiss to Tara's cheek. "We have all night to get acquainted."

"I want you." Tara's voice was ragged with lust, her eyes feverish with desire. She moved her hands down to Pam's shoulders and gripped them so that she could pull Pam flush against her.

"I know," Pam replied dryly, a small smirk adorning her kiss-swollen lips. "Come upstairs, Котёнок"

Taking Tara's hand, she led them up the grand spiraling marble staircase with bold, polished mahogany railings. The ebony skinned vampire followed blindly, willingly, her trust in Pam absolute.

Pam led them down a dark carpeted hallway. The walls on either side were decorated with paintings but Tara paid them no heed, too concentrated she was on the gentle sway of Pam's posterior beneath her body hugging cheongsam dress.

"You're staring," Pam's husky drawl wafted from full lips to dance a path through the air to Tara's ears. The blonde didn't have to turn to know that Tara was eyeing her ass; she could _feel_ it.

"I know," Tara said, echoing Pam's earlier sentiment, her voice cool and unrepentant as her bittersweet chocolate gaze lingered on her maker's behind.

Pam released a throaty laugh then came to a stop in front of a pair of creamy white double doors. Letting go of her progeny's hand, she turned down the golden handles and pushed the doors inward, letting them yawn open.

Tara stepped into the room and was greeted to the biggest four-poster bed she had ever laid her eyes on. The sheets draped over the bed with a deep purple, so dark they were almost black. A legion of swollen pillows lined the headboard. Moonlight poured in from the twin windows on Tara's left, saturating the room with an ethereal glow that threatened to figuratively steal her breath away.

Pam closed the doors quietly behind her then made her way up to her progeny. She stopped directly behind Tara, a small smile playing at the corner of her lips at the sight of Tara's evident enchantment of her surroundings. She reached up with her hand and swept Tara's inky black locks to one side, exposing her neck. Bending, she placed a deliberate kiss to spot where she had marked Tara with her fangs.

"Mine," she murmured against the ebony skin. Wrapping her arms around Tara, she trailed her lips up the side of the young vampire's neck, her actions deliberately unhurried.

"Yours," Tara replied in kind, sinking unashamedly back into Pam as the blonde continued to nuzzle at her from behind. She tilted her head, giving Pam more access and gasped when the blonde's full lips touched on the sensitive spot behind her ear. She shuddered when Pam's tongue peeked out to lick at the spot before her lips returned to press a gentle kiss.

Pam kissed her way to the underside of Tara's jaw, her plump lips grazing over the shell of an ebony hued ear, across the expanse of a baby-soft cheek and down to trace the line of a strong jaw. Her hands were no longer idle as they unwound themselves from around Tara only to teasingly travel up her progeny's sides. They came to rest at the lapels of Tara's open leather jacket and gently but firmly began sliding the piece of clothing off Tara's shoulders and down her arms.

Tara shivered as her sleeveless arms were exposed, not from the cool temperature that permeated the room, but from the feel of Pam's fingers dragging a teasing path down her arms as she went.

When the jacket was finally peeled from Tara's body, Pam carelessly tossed it into a corner. "Turn around," she commanded softly, her breath metaphorically hitching in her throat when Tara swiveled around to face her, her eyes dark as night, her expression ablaze with desire. Eyes cut from sapphires ran rampant down the length of Tara's body, tracing the contours of her progeny's well toned arms, the swell of her breasts, her washboard stomach and powerful thighs that were currently encased in a pair of skinny denim jeans.

"Breathtaking," Pam sighed, her voice taking on a dreamy quality. She reached for the hem of Tara's tank top and tugged it up and over the young vampire's head, exposing a well-muscled abdomen and perky breasts. "No bra?" the blonde queried as she discarded the tank top in the same fashion as the leather jacket. A pale eyebrow arched in amusement.

Tara smirked. "I figure I'd save you the trouble. Besides, you tend to rip them." Her smirk grew wicked as she leered up at Pam.

Pam chuckled. "Because they're always in my way." Her voice was completely unapologetic. She leaned in and pressed a kiss to Tara's clavicle. Then she moved her lips downward toward the valley of Tara's breasts, dropping butterfly kisses along the way.

Tara sighed in contentment, a hand threading through thick blonde hair as she relished the attentions Pam was lavishing on her. She inhaled sharply when Pam kissed the underside of her left breast then hissed when Pam moved up to take a nipple into her mouth.

"Fuck! Yesss," Tara hissed. Her hand moved to the back of Pam's head, gripping a handful of her hair to hold the blonde in place. She gasped in combined pleasure and pain when Pam bit down none too gently but the blonde quickly soothed the hurt by running the flat of her tongue over the bite.

Pam continued her journey down Tara's body, delighting in the taste of oranges and dark chocolate. There was also a new scent, the scent of arousal and it was a thick and potent fragrance that seeped directly out from between her progeny's legs, setting Pam's blood on fire. Kissing her way down to the top of Tara's jeans, making sure to pay homage to each protruding abdominal muscle with her lips, she then popped the button open with her mouth. Gripping the zipper between her teeth, she slid the metal tab down, eliciting a wanton groan from Tara and exposing a pair of simple forest green boy briefs.

Pam sank to her knees in front of Tara, grabbed the top of the jeans and began tugging them down in an achingly slow manner that had the young vampire squirming with need. When she was met with resistance by Tara's cowboy boots, she looked up at her progeny, who quickly toed them off. Smiling, Pam continued to pull down the jeans, taking along it with, Tara's socks.

Tara watched as Pam tossed aside her articles of clothing before standing back up. Now clad in only her boy briefs, Tara was almost completely exposed whilst Pam was still fully clothed. It was time to return the favor. "Turn around," she husked, indicating a spinning motion with her finger. When Pam presented her with her back, Tara quickly reached for the zipper and tugged it down. Just as Pam did to her, Tara moved slowly, drawing out the process in an unmistakable act of seduction.

As the dress began splitting open, it exposed a glorious expanse of flawless alabaster skin. Unable to resist, Tara began pressing kisses down Pam's back, her lips tracing the jutting bones of her shoulder blades and the ridges of her spine, her tongue swiping out to taste the lingering flavor of apples and vanilla. When the zipper ended just at the curve of the top of Pam's ass, Tara stood back up and helped Pam to slide the dress from her perfectly sculpted frame.

The dress, an exotic picture of black silk and blood-red floral designs, slithered down Pam's pale body only to pool at her heeled feet like flowing dark water. The blonde kicked off both the dress and her pumps, leaving her in a midnight blue lacy thong.

"C'mere," Pam husked, her eyes lidded with lust. She drew Tara into her arms, captured her lips in a soul-shattering kiss then proceeded to walk Tara backwards towards the bed.

The backs of Tara's knees hit the edge of the bed, causing them to buckle and her to fall backwards onto the downy softness. Pam followed with a preternatural grace, then scooted them both up towards the head of the bed. She draped the length of her body over Tara's, their skins of ebony and snow a startling but magnificent contrast.

"_Mo chro_," she whispered lovingly, as she peppered Tara's face with kisses, her lips moving over closed eyelids, down the slope of Tara's nose, across both cheeks and onto Tara's mouth. "_A chuisle mo chro_," she breathed against Tara's lips. _My heart…pulse of my heart._

Tara had not a single clue what Pam was saying but she didn't need to; the bonded that hummed between them told Tara exactly what the blonde was feeling, what the words made her feel when she spoke them to Tara. As such, Pam could whisper sweet nothings to her in every language known to man, so long as her maker continued to nurture her end of the bond with feelings of want, love and devotion.

Tara's attention was brought back to blonde hovering above her when Pam began suckling on her neck. Her maker's fangs had protracted and now she dragged them teasingly along the soft skin. Tara arched into Pam's mouth, seeking more, always more.

"Please," Tara rasped. Her hand had found purchase in Pam's hair and was alternating between threading her fingers through the silky strands and tugging on them. "Please," she repeated, her voice tinged with desperation. Her body felt as though it were burning, her veins alight with liquid fire. She writhed against Pam, trying to find some sort of friction that would quell the torturous throbbing between her legs.

Pam acquiesced to Tara's pleas by maneuvering a hand onto the young vampire's breast and a leg between her thighs. She simultaneously pressed upward with her leg and squeezed down with her hand, drawing out a pleased mewl from Tara's parted lips.

"Easy," Pam purred, her voice an exercise in sultry tones. She licked at the juncture of Tara's neck and shoulder, where she had sank in her fangs to mark her ownership of Tara. "All in due time," she continued, her voice a seductive rasp. She gave the mark another lick, dragging the flat of her tongue over the ebony skin.

Using her knees, she pushed at Tara's inner thighs, causing them to fall further open. Settling more snugly between them, Pam then slid leisurely down until she was face to face with Tara's breasts. She placed a kiss to each one before her mouth latched onto the left, sucking, licking and gently nipping. Her hand tended to the right breast, pulling, caressing and pinching until both nipples were stiff peaks.

Tara's long drawn out moan of pleasure/pain echoed around the room as Pam lifted her head only to sink her fangs into the skin above the swell of Tara's left breast. She arched helplessly into Pam's mouth as Pam sipped from her, drawing her rich, hot blood into her mouth and down her throat. She fairly whimpered in abject frustration when Pam pulled away, pausing only to close the twin puncture wounds with a swipe of her blood encrusted tongue.

Moving back up, Pam sought Tara's lips with her own. Tara's tongue immediately ventured out to lick away the residue blood, her ardent wanderings over Pam's mouth causing the blonde to moan wantonly. Reaching down with a hand, Pam found the top of Tara's underwear. With a swift yank, she pulled it off Tara's hips, throwing the tattered pieces off the side of the bed. Her hand immediately returned to nestle between Tara's legs and she cupped her, the edge of her palm pressing gently up against the young vampire's clit.

"God, yes!" Tara's cry of pleasure, of relief was palpable in her tone as the feel of Pam cupping her caused her to rip her lips away from the blonde in order to throw her head back against the pillows, her onyx colored hair splaying about her head like a rippling black sheet.

"So wet," Pam murmured appreciatively. "So responsive," she continued when Tara's hips lifted off the bed to seek firmer contact. She tracked her fingers down the length of Tara's sex, gathering her juices and coating her fingers.

Tara was panting needlessly, her eyes glazed over with passion, her mind fogged over with pleasure. The ache between her legs was excruciating, the fire that scorched her nerves agonizing. "God, please! Pam, please!" Her voice echoed her sentiments of desperation and potent need.

"Shh," Pam soothed. She dropped a kiss onto Tara's cheek, her lips lingering against the soft skin. "I'm going to take care of you, I promise," she murmured.

"You're _going_ to kill me is what you're gonna do," Tara choked out, barely able to form coherent thought let along coherent sentences. She bucked hard into Pam's hand. "C'mon," she pleaded, desperation etched on her face."What are you waiting for?"

Pam shot Tara a Cheshire-cat smile that made Tara groan in aggravation. It quickly tapered into a deep guttural moan however, when Pam ghosted the pad of her thumb over her clit, her other fingers circling her entrance, teasing the young vampire with the promise of penetration.

"Patience is a virtue, _äskling,_" the blonde intoned wickedly. She continued to play with Tara's sex, running teasing fingers along her nether lips, over her clit, around her opening but never actually going where her progeny so desperately needed her. As her hands were kept busy, so were her lips. She began making her way back down Tara's toned body, leaving a trail of heated kisses that caused ebony skin to prickle and Tara to pant, squirm, moan and curse.

When she reached the apex of her progeny's thighs, she dropped a kiss atop of the neatly trimmed patch of wiry black curls before moving her mouth down to Tara's weeping sex.

Tara's eyes all but rolled to the back of her head when she felt Pam's cool breath on her clit. Her hands were tight fists on either side of her, clutching at the bed sheets and wrinkling them, her hair now mused and tangled around her head from her constant thrashing.

Pam took in the way Tara's eyes were screwed shut, her face pinched with frustration and blatant pleasure. She noted the way her hips bounced off the bed, how the contours of her abdominal muscles rippled under each movement. She felt Tara's thighs trying to squeeze themselves together in a vain attempt to ease the fire between her legs. Watching Tara lose herself in the throes of passion was a sight that never failed to turn Pam on.

She redirected her focus back onto Tara, more specifically Tara's dripping sex. The smell of Tara's arousal was intoxicating and it made the blonde's mouth water. She dove in without warning, using the flat of her tongue to lick at the slit between Tara's nether lips. She purred happily against the sopping flesh when Tara let loose a primal scream of pleasure, her hips quickly bucking out of control. Settling one hand on Tara's hip to steady her movements, she pressed two fingers inside of Tara with a smooth thrust, her lips wrapping around the swollen bundle of nerves.

"Jesus! Fuck!" Expletives and calling the Lord's name in vain were all the words Tara seemed to manage. That and ear shattering screams that made Pam smile smugly into her progeny's sex.

Tara managed to howl like a wolf baying at the moon when Pam twisted her fingers inside of her, going deeper, her thrusts becoming harder, faster. She thrashed almost violently under Pam's administrations and almost threw them both off the bed with the force of her bucking hips when the blonde gently bit down on her clit.

"Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck…" It was fast becoming a mantra as Pam began setting a punishing pace, her wrist a virtual blur as she pounded her fingers into Tara, pausing only to slip in a third finger before continuing. Tara's hips were in constant motion, bobbing up and down to a rhythm that was as old as time itself. She mewled then whimpered then moaned long and loud when Pam extracted her now drenched fingers only to replace them with her tongue.

The blonde wriggled a hand under Tara's right thigh, lifted it and threw it over her shoulder. The new position made Tara more open, more accessible and Pam relentlessly drove her tongue inside her progeny, relishing the feel of Tara's inner walls clamping down on the writhing muscle. While her tongue was in play, she reached up to thumb the young vampire's neglected clit, sending tremors to shoot straight from between Tara's thighs to every over-sensitized nerve in her body.

Tara felt her orgasm building; the creep of heat had started in the pit of her stomach and was now strengthening and swelling at an alarming rate. It wouldn't be long before it broke over Tara, sending her body into a spectacular climax composed of screams and stars.

Pam too, could feel Tara's impeding orgasm. She felt it in the way her body was growing more rigid, muscles locking together in preparation for the tidal wave of pleasure that would no doubt stampede throughout Tara's body like drunken elephants. She felt it in the way her inner walls clutched at her tongue, contracting, quivering and seizing.

Retracting her tongue, she slid three saturated fingers back inside Tara before the young vampire had a second to protest the loss of contact. Tara's inner walls immediately clamped down on Pam's fingers alternating between holding them hostage and drawing them deeper even as the blonde continued to drive her fingers in and out of Tara.

"So tight," Pam grunted with each thrust, her brows furrowed with apt concentration. "So tight. So hot. So _wet_." She bent and caught Tara's clit between her teeth, gently pulling and sucking. "Come for me," she demanded against the swollen bud of nerves. She thrust hard into Tara, up to the hilt, twisted her fingers and curled them. "_Now_."

Tara came with an almighty yell that threatened to shatter the windows and blow holes through the walls. She screamed Pam's name over and over as her orgasm wrecked havoc throughout her body, sending her newborn vampire hormones into a frenzied state of ecstasy and her mind to blank over with sheer pleasure, whilst her body convulsed and flailed under Pam.

Pam shuddered as her own orgasm rippled through her, Tara's hurricane of emotions zipping down the bond to add to her own heightened arousal. Slowing the speed and pace of her thrusts, she waited until Tara was a boneless mess against the crumpled sheets before she extracted her digits. Sitting up between Tara's open thighs, she made a show of sucking her passion-coated fingers into her mouth, her pale cheeks hollowing out as she sucked Tara's juices down her throat.

"Christ," Tara choked out, her voice no louder than a strangled whisper as she peered up at Pam with eyes that were at half-mast. "You _are_ trying to kill me."

Pam merely smiled around the fingers that were still in her mouth. Releasing them with a pop, she lifted herself onto her knees then bent over Tara. "Buckle up, darlin'," she purred. Leaning forward until she her lips were just a hair's breath away from Tara's, she smiled wickedly, her blue eyes dancing with mischief. "I'm not nearly done with you yet."

For the rest of the night, Pam showed Tara just how hot and bright the fire between them burned.

Tara reciprocated by showing just how hot she burned for Pam.

**TBC**

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**A/N 2** – Translations are as follows:

_Äskling – _my love (Swedish)

Котёнок – kitten (Russian)

_Mo chro_ – My heart (Irish)

_A chuisle mo chro_ – pulse of my heart (Irish)


	5. Chapter 5 – Scorch

**A/N** – Hey, guys. Thanks to everyone for your continued support on this story. Here's the next chapter for ya. Comments, critiques, gym socks etc etc are all very welcomed. Happy reading!

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**Chapter 5 – Scorch**

"_To love is to destroy…to be loved is to be the one destroyed."_ – Cassandra Clare

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Maker and progeny were so close to sliding in that final piece of the puzzle. The bond could feel it and it quivered in eager anticipation as its charges continued circling closer to their final destination, their steps slow but sure and steady.

Tara was hovering so near to those three words that they were a persistent burn on the tip of her tongue, a fire that singed the inside of her lips. Her eyes were all but screaming them each time they landed on Pam and the expression on her face whenever she looked at the blonde was like an obnoxious blinking Vegas neon sign.

Pam too was toeing that final line that separated her from Tara. The sweet victory of abolishing that almost non-existent border was so potent on her tongue that it often left the blonde dazed and reeling from its intensity.

The bond between them was already alight with feelings and embedded with deep emotion that only the most gifted of writers could do justice to with words. Now if only its charges would unlock the last chain of restraint around them and submerge themselves wholly, willingly, into the fire that burned so strong and bright between them…

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Jessica was watching Tara watch Pam. Though highly entertaining at first, the redhead vampire was becoming increasingly uncomfortable. She felt as though she were intruding on a private moment, one that she should not have the privilege of bearing witness to. She was also starting to feel like a voyeur but try as she might she couldn't seem to tear her eyes away from the way Tara's eyes raked unashamedly down her maker's body from behind the bar. The way Tara's eyes, dark with arousal, combed the length of Pam's tall frame, her tongue peeking out to wet her bottom lip even as she went about mixing and pouring drinks with frightening accuracy considering her eyes were currently distracted…it made Jessica squirm in her seat.

"Okay, you _need_ to stop," Jessica finally blurted out. She gasped in surprise when the sharp tip of her fangs, which she hadn't even known dropped, pierced her bottom lip and immediately she clamped a mortified hand over her mouth, cornflower blue eyes widening in shock.

Tara's head instantly whipped over to face Jessica when the iron-y tang of blood stained the air. Her lips curled in wicked amusement when she found the redhead ensconced on the barstool, hand clamped like a steel trap over her mouth, her eyes imitating that of a deer caught in the headlights.

"Well, well, well," Tara drawled. She sauntered over to stand in front of Jessica, a smirk of fiendish proportions adorning her face. "Looks like someone's got a case of vampire wood." She leaned in over the bar, closing the distance to Jessica until she was near enough to allow the sweet and summery tendrils of strawberries and cream to curl around her senses. "Are you getting your jollies watch me watch my lover, Jess?" Tara's expression was smug, her eyes positively alight with glee.

If Jessica was still capable of blushing, the magnolia-white skin of her cheeks would have been stained crimson. She ducked her head, pointedly avoiding Tara's laughing eyes as she fought to regain a shred of self-discipline and dignity.

Tara chuckled unsympathetically, loving that fate had provided such delicious ammunition to torture and tease her friend with. She leaned in further until her lips almost brushed Jessica's ear. "Did it get you all hot and bothered, J? To watch me undress my maker with my eyes?" Her voice was low, her tone suggestive. She blew a teasing breath into Jessica's ear, stifling a giggle when the redhead exhaled raggedly. "Does it make you _wet_, knowing that I was eye-fucking her and that you _enjoyed_ watching me do it?"

Jessica suppressed a shudder and scooted back until she teetered on the edge of the barstool, almost falling off in her haste to put some distance between her and Tara. She forced her fangs to retract and sucked in a needless breath to calm her overly excited hormones. When she was sure that she had a firm grip on a measure of self-control, she turned back to level an unamused glare at Tara.

"That was so _not_ funny," she growled, or tried to. It still came out a little like a whine and the redhead didn't help matters when she folded her arms across her chest and pouted like a petulant child.

"Well, _I_ thought it was rather entertaining," a dry voice sounded from behind Jessica causing the seated redhead to jump, a terrified squeak emanating from her lips.

Pam chuckled darkly as Jessica swiveled around to face her, her cornflower blue eyes wide with embarrassment and more than a little fear. She towered over Jessica, who was immediately frozen to her seat, her expression flitting between terror and morbid fascination as she watched Pam zero in on her.

Pam's lips quirked when she felt Tara's mirth tickle its way down to her end of the bond and decided to join in on the fun.

"What do you think, _habibti_?" She reached out and wrapped a coil of Jessica's ginger hair around her finger, her expression purposely thoughtful as she sifted the soft strands between her fingertips. "Maybe Jess here would like a lesson in the ways of Sapphic loving."

Tara snickered, almost choking on her tongue as she watched Pam turn on the charm on Jessica who now looked completely petrified. She fought the urge to double over with laughter when Pam actually leaned down to graze her lips over Jessica's cheek, murmuring a litany of suggestive words in a deliberately husky tone that made Jessica's back go ramrod straight.

Jessica leapt off the barstool like she'd been scalded and almost tripped over her own two feet as she scrambled out from under Pam. She scrubbed furiously at the spot where Pam's lips touched her cheek and alternated between scowling at Pam and glowering at Tara. "You guys suck," she snarled simultaneously dismayed and embarrassed that there was a not so subtle ache singing out from between her legs.

"_All_ the time," Pam purred, her eyes glinting with mischief. She let loose a low husky laugh when Jessica's face screwed up in disgust. "Ah, to be so young and naïve," she lamented with a dramatic sigh. She cast a sidelong glance at Tara who was shaking with barely contained laughter, her eyes twinkling with delight as she watched the humorous exchange between her lover and her friend.

"You guys are so mean," Jessica grumbled under her breath. She reached out and careful not to touch Pam in any way shape or form, swiped her denim jacket off the bar top. "I'm going home."

"To rub one out?" Pam inquired in an innocent tone. Off to the side, Tara snorted and choked back a snigger.

Jessica blew out another disgruntled huff before she sped off, disappearing out the front door.

Pam watched her go, her face returning to its smooth blandness save for her eyes, which were dancing with merriment. She turned back to Tara who still exhibiting signs of being highly amused even as she began mixing a customer a long island iced tea. The blonde sent down a wave of affection through the bond, causing Tara to smile and look up. She winked at Pam, sent back a flash of adoration before returning to the task at hand.

Pam shook her head as she returned to her throne.

'_Fuckin' baby vamps.'_

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"Is that something you would consider?" Tara questioned softly as she opened the bedroom door before stepping aside to let Pam in first.

"What?" Pam drawled as she bypassed Tara, pausing only to steal a kiss before she made her way to the dressing table to deposit her jewelry. She sat on the small bench and proceeded to take out her earrings.

Tara closed the door with a quick snick and leaned against it, her expression pensive. "Letting someone join us in bed."

Pam was instantly off the small padded bench and standing in front of Tara. Her azure blue eyes blazed with barely contained jealousy and murderous rage as she looked at Tara. "_No_." Her voice was dangerously low, one octave shy of a growl. "I _do not_ share."

Tara flinched slightly at the flashflood of anger and jealousy bombarding her end of the bond from Pam. She reached up and cupped her maker's face, purposely stroking her fingers down the soft expanse of Pam's cheek until the muscles in her tightly cinched jaw relaxed. "It was a just a question," Tara assured quietly. She caressed the side of Pam's face, sighing when Pam instinctively leaned into her touch. "Just so you know," she continued as she watched Pam's eyes flutter. "I don't share either."

"Good," Pam whispered roughly. She leaned forward and claimed Tara's lips, her kiss punishing as she used the act to wash away the lingering sting of hurt, jealousy and rage. She only pulled back when Tara's lips were visibly bruised and swollen, her eyes dilated with desire. "You are _mine_," Pam growled, her voice almost sub-vocal. "Nobody gets to touch you but me."

"Ditto," Tara returned. She rocked forward to press another kiss to Pam's full lips. "Will you do something for me?" she asked against Pam's mouth, her voice breathless with need.

"Anything," came Pam's instant reply. She pulled back and stared at Tara through heavily lidded eyes, patiently awaiting instruction.

Tara stepped out from under Pam and took slow but purposeful steps until she reached the side of the bed. She perched herself on it and shot the blonde a smoldering look. "Take off your clothes," she husked, her voice rough with desire. "Slowly."

Pam turned to face Tara and smirked. "You want a show, _lover?_" She sashayed towards Tara, her movements exaggerated to allow her hips to swish back and forth in an enticing manner. She came to a stop not three feet from Tara and stared hungrily at her progeny.

Tara merely stared back, her eyes black as pitch from arousal, her craving for Pam painted across her face. Her lower lip slid into her mouth when Pam began sliding her unbuttoned studded denim jacket off her shoulders in an achingly slow manner to reveal bare pale shoulders.

Tara's tongue immediately peeked out to wet her lips as Pam slid the jacket down her arms, exposing flawless alabaster skin as she went. She spared the briefest of glances at the discarded jacket that landed on the floor with a soft thump before her eyes moved back up to zero in on Pam's hand, which was hovering in front of her chest.

Pam's torso was encased in a front zipper black PVC corset. It hugged her curves and gently pushed generous breasts upwards, giving the blonde a bountiful bosom. She reached for the lip of the zipper and began pulling it down, her eyes never leaving Tara's as she slowly split open the corset, revealing a strapless lacy cobalt blue bra and a sculpted abdomen. When that piece of clothing dropped carelessly to the floor to join the jacket, Pam moved to her red pleated side split miniskirt, making sure to drag her fingers teasingly down her sides first. She smirked when Tara began panting softly, her legs unconsciously spreading as Pam danced her fingers along the flat planes of her stomach.

Tara thought she might spontaneously combust as she watched Pam reach for the buttons on the side of her miniskirt. One ebony hand snaked down to play with the top of her jeans as Pam popped the first button with a teasing flick of her finger. She graced Tara with a panty-dropping smile before she popped the second button, causing the skirt to fall away from around her waist. It fluttered to the floor, adding to the pile of crumpled clothing.

Pam stood before her, now clad in nothing more than her lingerie and heels. Her legs were covered in fishnet stockings, which were clipped with suspenders to either side of a lacy scrap of material that barely passed for panties. She kicked off her heels and tossed Tara a coy smile and a sultry gaze as she sauntered over to the dressing table and propped a leg on top of the padded bench. Unclipping the suspenders, she proceeded to make a show of unrolling her stocking in a decidedly unhurried manner.

Tara's fangs protracted with a subtle click as more of Pam's leg was exposed. Her fingers toyed with the button of her jeans, popping it open with a quick yank. She tugged down the zipper as Pam pulled the stocking off with a flourish and draped it over the edge of the dresser. Her hand slipped inside of her underwear as Pam turned her attention to her other stocking and Tara couldn't hold back the moan of pleasure as her fingers were met with an abundance of desire pooling in her underwear. When a finger brushed across her clit, Tara couldn't help but call out to her lover.

"Pamela…"

The sound of Tara whispering her full name in such an aroused manner caused Pam to snap her head up so fast that she almost gave herself whiplash. The blonde's winter-blue eyes narrowed in on Tara's hand, which was now inside her unbuttoned jeans, stroking at her moist sex with sure fingers. Her own fangs clicked down and she abandoned her slow striptease in favor of vamp speeding out of her undergarments.

"That's it," Pam encouraged softly as she ambled slowly towards Tara in all her naked glory, her eyes never leaving the spot between Tara's legs. "Touch yourself for me," she husked, her eyes dark with lust. Her nostrils flared when she came to a stop in front of her progeny; Tara's arousal was a thick and heady scent in the air and immediately Pam wanted nothing more than to bury her face between Tara's legs and just _lick_. She knelt down in front of Tara and reached for the top of her jeans.

"Lift," she commanded softly.

Tara braced herself on one hand and her hips briefly came off the bed allowing Pam to pull both her jeans and her underwear down her legs. She gave herself a mental pat on the back for having removed her boots earlier downstairs.

"Don't stop," Pam murmured as she yanked the items of clothing off Tara and tossed them behind her. She returned her gaze back to between Tara's legs just in time to see two fingers slide inside of her progeny. She moaned, the guttural sound echoing off the walls in the otherwise silent room as she watched Tara finger herself.

Tara's body was already at a feverish pitch. Between Pam kneeling between her legs watching her fuck herself and the exquisite feeling of her fingers brushing up against her inner walls, the young vampire knew it wouldn't take much to push her off the edge. She pulled her fingers out slightly then pushed back in until they were knuckle deep. Her mewl of pleasure was joined by Pam's groan of arousal.

"Make yourself come," Pam demanded. She tore her eyes away from the tantalizing sight of Tara's fingers inside of her own sex to lock her azure blue gaze with twin pools of coffee brown.

Tara threw one arm behind her, her palm bracing itself on the flat of the mattress to support her weight. She shamelessly spread her legs wider and began driving her fingers in and out of herself, her hips bucking in time to each thrust. Her eyes never left Pam's as she fucked herself and the frisson of desire and lust coursing from her maker added to her already excited state. She grunted when her inner walls contracted around her thrusting fingers and began pumping even harder, curling her fingers to rub at that special spot.

Pam watched, completely mesmerized as Tara fucked herself to the precipice of orgasm. Her eyes flickered from Tara's thrusting hand between her legs to her progeny's dark gaze of blatant arousal. When Tara whimpered and her hips gave a particularly sharp thrust upwards, Pam knew Tara was close. "Come for me," she whispered, her voice a low rasp. She bore a deep blue gaze into Tara's eyes. "Come."

Tara's eyes couldn't help but screw her eyes shut as she bore down on her own thrusting fingers, an act that sent her spiraling into orgasm. She cried out Pam's name as her body convulsed under the waves of her climax, her thighs trembling and her toes curling.

Pam moved up to the bed to wrap her arms around Tara as she rode out her orgasm. She pressed soft kisses into mused sable hair and murmured sweet nothings into a nearby ear. When Tara's body gave a final shudder, she collapsed sideways into Pam, burrowing her face into the crook of her maker's neck.

"And here I thought _I_ was the one giving a show," Pam drawled lightly as she ran a soothing hand down Tara's t-shirt clad back. She stopped when she reached the hem of the t-shirt and bunched it in her hands. She began rolling it upwards over Tara's torso, revealing a toned stomach and a simple black sports bra. "Up," she instructed gently, pulling the t-shirt over Tara's head when she lifted her arms. She tossed the t-shirt over the side of the bed, made quick work of divesting Tara of her bra then rolled Tara back first onto the bed.

"Hi," she whispered, her tone soft and affectionate as her eyes twinkled down at Tara.

"Hey." Tara's tone was no louder than a loving whisper as she reached up to thread lean fingers into Pam's hair. She carded careful fingers through the silky strands, marveling at the softness.

Pam sighed in utter contentment as Tara continued to toy with her hair. She leaned down and began peppering kisses along the side of her progeny's jaw, causing a slow burn to begin in the pit of Tara's stomach.

"Pam?"

"Hmm?" Pam nuzzled at the spot below Tara's ear, smiling when a shudder ran through Tara's lithe frame.

"I love you."

Pam froze, her muscles locking together in reaction to those three words. She lifted her head and ran smack into a pair of sincere bittersweet chocolate orbs.

"Too soon?" Tara inquired, her voice gentle as she reached up to stroke soothing fingers down Pam's cheek. She took no offence to her maker's silence; she finally voiced aloud her feelings because she wanted to, not because she expected a reply.

Pam shook her head, her mind suddenly chaotic with words that she couldn't quite string together quick enough to form a coherent sentence. "No," she finally managed to choke out. She opened her mouth to speak again but nothing came out.

Tara smiled softly, understanding clouding the dark of her eyes. "It's okay," she whispered. She craned her neck until her lips brushed against Pam's slightly parted ones. "You don't have to say it if you're not ready." She pressed another feather-light kiss to the side of the blonde's mouth. "I know how you feel about me." She emphasized this by taking Pam's free hand and guiding it to rest at the space above her heart. "You tell me through our bond," she breathed out, her eyes reddening slightly with blood tears as she recounted all the pulses of love and fierce affection Pam sent down to her from her end of the bond.

"I love you too," Pam croaked out hoarsely after minutes of coercing her jaw into co-operating. Her shoulders sagged with relief as her brain finally managed to construct the bridge of communication to her mouth. She quirked a small smile at Tara who was blinking valiantly against the onslaught of bloody tears that were threatening to fall. "I love you, Tara," she declared, her voice now firm and steady. She felt her vision blur, knew that her own eyes were bloody with tears.

Tara returned Pam's smile with a watery one of her own. "I love you so much it hurts," she admitted, her voice shaking with emotion. She cupped Pam's cheek, fingers idly caressing the soft skin beneath her fingertips.

A bloody tear slipped down Pam's cheek, only to be captured by Tara's finger. "I know," she husked as she watched Tara lick away the drop of blood clinging to her fingertip. She knew exactly how Tara felt; her heart ached whenever Tara was away from her and soared whenever Tara touched her.

Tara reversed their positions; she now hovered over Pam and the blonde was sprawled on her back, her hair splayed around her head like a golden halo. "Do you trust me?" she asked, her voice quiet with an emotion Pam couldn't quite decipher.

"Only with my heart, body and soul," was Pam's instant reply. There wasn't the slightest hint of hesitation in her tone. She watched with curious eyes as Tara turned away from her to lean slightly over the side of the bed. She heard her open the nightstand drawer and rummage around but didn't get up to see what her lover was rooting around for.

Tara withdrew two items from the drawer and closed it with a quiet thump. She turned back to face Pam, revealing her spoils: two silk scarves. "Do you trust me?" She repeated solemnly, her eyes carefully trained on Pam's face as she awaited the blonde's reply.

Pam's response was to scoot up to the head of the bed.

Tara followed slowly, her eyes never leaving Pam's azure blue gaze as she searched for even a flicker of doubt or fear. She knew about Pam's past as a mistress of the night, knew about some of the more sordid things the blonde had endured in the hands of "clients" who harbored dark, perverse desires and fetishes. Acts of such depravity that still made Tara tremble with rage whenever she allowed herself to delve back into the gut-wrenching and tear-stained conversations she had with Pam. Conversations, confessions and revelations that were forever seared into her memory, leaving scars on her heart and a terrible brand on her soul.

Pam felt the blistering heat of scathing fury burn down from Tara's end of the bond to hers. The thunder of blind hatred and a deep bitterness that pierced the blonde's heart followed in quick succession, momentarily blindsiding Pam. When she recovered from the onslaught of emotions, a sad, bittersweet smile touched Pam's lips because she realized where her progeny's thoughts had vanished to.

"Hey." She reached up and cupped Tara's cheek, her eyes soft with understanding as they found Tara's pain-filled coffee stained eyes. Pain for her. "Stay with me," she implored softly, her thumb extending out to halt a single line of blood that fell from Tara's eye. The sight of Tara crying for her broke Pam's heart. "Stay," she repeated shakily, willing Tara to step off the mental path of painful memories.

Tara swallowed a sob and turned to press her lips to Pam's palm, allowing the familiar fragrance of apples and vanilla to wash away her dark thoughts.

"It's okay," Pam soothed her lover as she watched a barrage of conflicting emotions stampede across Tara's proud features.

Tara shook her head vehemently. "It's not," she choked out, her voice hoarse with tears. She turned a blood-stained gaze onto Pam, her eyes tortured. "I wish I could take away your pain." She ran her knuckles down her maker's cheek, her movements jerky in wake of her inner turmoil.

"I love you," was all Pam said.

The bond between them buckled slightly under the strain of heavy emotions Tara sent down it but was quickly placated when Pam smoothed over the more bleak feelings with waves of trust, warmth and a deep, rare love.

Minutes passed with maker and progeny just simply gazing at each other before Pam finally spoke.

"I trust you," she reassured Tara. She ghosted a barely there kiss across her lover's lips. "Make a memory with me," she breathed out softly, her eyes shining with trust and love.

Tara remained motionless for little while before she nodded and knelt tentatively next to Pam. She took the blonde's right hand and lifted it to her mouth to press an achingly tender kiss to the inside of her wrist. She then began dotting a ring of kisses around Pam's wrist, alternating between whispering her lips across alabaster skin and nibbling at the soft flesh. When she completed the circle, she wrapped one of the scarves around her maker's wrist and gently guided it above Pam's head. She paused when Pam inhaled sharply but at her lover's nod, proceeded to tie her wrist to one of the wooden rails that made up made up the pattern of the headboard.

"Okay?" Tara asked softly. She had purposely tied the knot in a manner that was secure enough to hold but loose enough that a swift tug would cause it to unravel.

"I'm fine, s_chätzlein_." Pam twisted her body so that she could drop a kiss to the top of Tara's thigh. "I won't break," she continued softly as she lay back down on the mattress. "I'm safe with you."

"You are," Tara affirmed, smiling at the first of many nicknames Pam anointed her with. She reached out and cradled Pam's left wrist in her hand, fingers caressing the soft skin before bringing it to her lips and administering the same loving attention she bestowed on its mate. "I would never let anyone hurt you," she vowed passionately as she pressed her lips to Pam's wrist bone, lips lingering over the soft skin. "I'd die first."

She ghosted another kiss to the top of Pam's wrist then twisted the second silk scarf around the blonde's left hand and brought it up over her lover's head to tie it to the headboard. "Beautiful," she sighed when she finished. She cast an adoring gaze down at Pam, love and desire washing down the bond to filter through the blonde's veins.

Pam shuddered as Tara's emotions crashed into her. "Make love to me," she pleaded as Tara unfurled her body to lay down next to her.

"I will," Tara promised. She leaned forward and dropped an almost chaste kiss to Pam's cheek. "I'm going to worship your body like it's the most sacred of temples." She moved her lips to the corner of Pam's mouth, dropping another feather-light kiss. "I'm going to love you until you beg me to stop." She punctuated her statement with another kiss, this time to Pam's full lips.

"Never," Pam whispered fiercely, her voice already throaty with need, her eyes flashing blue fire. "I'll never stop wanting you."

Tara nodded as she kissed her way across Pam's chin, her sable hair falling about her face to tickle Pam's shoulder and chest.

Pam shut her eyes as Tara peppered butterfly kisses over every inch of her face. She relaxed into the loving caresses of Tara's lips as they roamed over her forehead, traced the line of her eyebrows, lingered over her closed lids, whispered down the slope of her nose and brushed reverently over her own lips. She sighed into Tara's mouth when her lover started up a slow, deep kiss that sent the most delicious lick of heat to run through her body. Her lips automatically parted when Tara's tongue probed the seam of her mouth, begging for entry and she felt the wetness of her arousal pool between her legs as Tara's tongue slid over her own, stroking and caressing.

As Tara loved Pam's mouth with her own, her hands began a determined journey of mapping out the exotic and enchanting topography that was her lover's body. She whispered fingers down the side of Pam's neck then meandered her way across the sharp jut of Pam's clavicle. She danced teasing but gentle fingers down to the swell of Pam's right breast and followed the pillow-y flesh upwards until she came into contact with a stiff nipple. Circling it, she elicited a moan from Pam when the tip of her finger touched the tip of her nipple.

She began an intricate pattern of caresses and kneads, alternating this erotic massage between Pam's left breast and right until the blonde was bucking her hips off the bed and tugging fitfully at the restraints that held her wrists captive.

"Tara." Pam's voice was breathless with longing, her eyes beseeching as she stared up at Tara who still whispering kisses across her face. "Tara."

"I'm here," her progeny replied, her voice barely audible as she planted a lingering kiss to Pam's cheek. "I'm here," she soothed as her hand moved from palming Pam's left breast to slide its fingers down the valley between the two breasts. "I've got you."

"I need you inside," Pam pleaded. She thrust her hips upwards, the ache between her legs completely unbearable. She shivered when Tara's hand obligingly traveled down to glide its fingertips over her delicately sculpted abdomen. "Please…" Her voice almost ended in a sob as Tara continued with unnerving patience to map out her abdominal muscles with the flat of her palm.

"Shh," Tara murmured as she maneuvered her lips to the side of Pam's jaw. She placed strategic kisses down the column of the blonde's throat, her hand sliding down to the apex of Pam's thighs at a leisurely pace that had the blonde moaning and swearing in intermittent intervals.

When Tara finally cupped her most intimate area in the palm of her hand, Pam released a low keen of satisfaction and tossed her head back, her eyes rolling to the back of her head. She gripped at the scarves that restrained her wrists, needing to hold onto something, _anything_. "Tara…" Her lover's name was fast becoming a mantra and it continued to fall effortlessly from her lips as Tara pressed the heel of her palm further into Pam's sopping wet center.

Tara marveled at how wet Pam was, how absolute _drenched_ her lover was for her. She dragged her lips down the side of Pam's neck, her nose nudging playfully at the soft skin. Her hand was suddenly very active as it ran two fingers down the length of the blonde's sex, saturating them with the thick coating of Pam's desire. She parted Pam's nether lips, her forefinger immediately zeroing in on Pam's entrance. She circled it, teasing her lover with the promise of penetration and bit gently into Pam's shoulder when Pam bucked into her touch.

Pam swore fervently when Tara thumbed her clit, flicking the swollen bundle of nerves gently. Her other finger was still hovering around and over her entrance, lingering in a manner that was driving Pam crazy with need. "Come _on_, Tara," she begged as she bucked her hips upwards. She shuddered when Tara dragged her fangs up her neck and tugged impatiently at the restraints. "_Please_!"

Tara gave in at the sound of Pam's impassionate pleas and slid two fingers inside of Pam, her well-lubricated digits gliding easily into the blonde's tight channel. She clenched her own legs in sympathy when Pam groaned wantonly, the feel of Tara inside of her making her mind go blank with pleasure. Tara began a steady pumping, her thrusts moving in time with the bucking of Pam's undulating hips.

"More," Pam moaned, her voice so raspy that it threatened to scrape the walls of the throat raw. She rolled her hips upwards, the action and the clenching of her inner walls drawing Tara's fingers deeper inside of her.

Tara nuzzled into Pam's neck as she slipped in a third finger. Her bones threatened to fracture when Pam's inner muscles clamped down on them, effectively holding them hostage. She pushed against the tightness, fingers scissoring to stretch out Pam's tight walls.

"Fuck!" Pam was lost in a haze of arousal, her head buzzing like bees in a beehive. Her wrists were currently rubbing themselves raw against the restraints but she paid the slight sting no heed, too busy concentrating on the feel of Tara's fingers curling deep inside of her. The buildup of heat that started in the pit of her belly was expanding, threatening to explode like fireworks on Fourth of July. She whimpered when Tara grazed her fangs along the front of her throat, then panted when she felt Tara twist the fingers she had knuckle deep inside of her.

"You're close," Tara observed when Pam's body jerked and her inner walls contracted almost painfully around her buried fingers. She lifted her head from the crook of Pam's neck to lock dark chocolate eyes with a pair of turbulent cerulean blue ones. "I want you to come looking into my eyes."

"Yes," Pam panted as Tara began driving her fingers into Pam with a preternatural speed that bespoke of her vampire status. She bit at her lower lip, her fangs slashing at the vulnerable flesh and tearing open twin wounds that immediately ran red with blood but she didn't care. Nothing mattered except for the thrusting of Tara's fingers into the most intimate part of her. The wall of heat magnified inside of her, enveloping her body and setting her veins on fire. She grunted when Tara pulled almost all the way out before plowing her fingers back in, her eyes never waving from Pam's own.

When Tara initiated a particularly sharp thrust and curled her fingers to brush up against that special spot, Pam's entire body snapped. A starburst of colors exploded before her eyes rendering her momentarily blind. Her orgasm careened into her with the force of an 18-wheeler truck and through the incessant ringing in her ears she heard an awful primal scream that didn't sound like it could have come from anything human. It took moments for her to realize that the scream was being torn from her own throat.

Tara continued to pump feverishly into Pam, drawing out her lover's orgasm. She watched in awe as Pam's body jerk and convulsed and spasmed next to her, the blonde completely lost in the throes of her climax. Her eyes were unfocused, needless breathes wheezing out from blood-stained lips that glistened even as her thighs trembled and the muscles on her stomach quivered like leaves in the wind. Her restrained wrists broke free of its bindings and her arms flopped limply about her head as Pam continued to shudder her way through her orgasm.

When Tara felt Pam's inner walls relax, she slowed her thrusts until her fingers were simply nestled inside of her lover. She eased out her fingers, mesmerized by how damp they were and immediately brought them to her lips. She sucked the moisture from each digit, making sure not to waste a single drop. After she licked and sucked her fingers clean of Pam's arousal, she turned and gathered a still slightly shaking Pam into her arms.

Pam immediately burrowed into her, her legs tangling with Tara's even as she buried her face into the crook of the young vampire's neck. She nuzzled into the soft ebony skin as Tara smoothed a soothing hand down her back, her other hand moving up to card gentle fingers through her messy blonde hair.

"I got ya," Tara whispered, her voice fierce with steadfast love. She ran a line of kisses along Pam's hairline, her nose nuzzling into sweet-smelling hair. "My girl," she murmured devotedly into Pam's hair. "My Pamela." She moved her mouth down to place her lips against Pam's ear. "I love you."

Pam's eyes slid shut of their own accord, the way Tara's love wrapping around her like the warmest of coats a balm to her once broken soul. She kissed the skin of Tara's neck. "I love you too."

**TBC**

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**A/N 2** – Translations:

_**Habibti**_ – my beloved/darling (Arabic)

**S**_**chätzlein**_ – my little treasure/honey/sweetheart (German)


	6. Chapter 6 – Rage

**A/N** – **W****ord of Warning**: there's kink in this chapter and mentions of rough-ish sex. FYI. Let me know how it goes if you've got a second. Happy reading.

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**Chapter 6 – Rage**

"_Love is perfected in pain."_ – Marvin Jay M. Torres

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They say absence makes the heart grow fonder. Pam and Tara believe this notion to be absolute bullshit. Absence pisses the heart off, starves it of its need for love, for touch, for its other half. Absence makes the heart howl with displeasure, sob with grief, and quiver with rage. Absence is no friend of the heart.

Tara and Pam were treated to their first taste of absence's bitter, chalky presence when it came time for Pam to accompany Eric on a month long business trip. He was the Sheriff of Area 5 and she his second in command. To refuse to go was not only a great dishonor to Eric but it would have disavowed the century long ties between maker and progeny, father and daughter, friend and friend.

That didn't mean the blonde had to be happy about it. She was present, she was alert and she was as intelligent and sharp as ever. However, beneath her dutiful exterior, a storm raged, wild, reckless and unyielding. She missed Tara with a force that more than once threatened to bring her to her knees. She woke nightly with blood rimming her eyes, her hand pressed tightly against the spot where the bond hummed. Being so far away from the young vampire, specifically clear across the country in Seattle, had stretched the bond taut. It was akin to distending a rubber band to the very precipice of its elasticity and holding it there, leaving a mound of tension that threatened to snap the band in half.

The bond was unhappy with this distance between maker and progeny and it sang its discontentment to both parties. Tara would wake in a similar fashion to Pam. Her eyes would be smudged red, her left hand a clenched fist over the bond in a vain attempt to knead away the ache that accumulated with every mile Pam put between them.

The first few days proved to be the hardest. Pam, being older, had better rudimentary control over her impulses and emotions though the strain was evident by the rigid set of her back and the severe line across her lips. Tara, on the other hand, had been severely disoriented by the sudden absence of her maker. Her body had quivered like a tuning fork, her mind foggy with disorder. She had barely managed to sleepwalk through her bartending duties, so unbalanced and disconnected from her surroundings as she was. It had taken several internal monologues, self-depreciating insults and a good cry before Tara had taken a fresh perspective to the sudden new development in her life.

Now, as maker and progeny adjusted to a month long ordeal of being separated, the fire that burned brightly between them began to plot revenge. It was angry, incensed at being denied. With each passing day of not being tended, it grew wilder, burned hotter, flickered brighter. What happens when you let a fire escape the confines of control? It rages…

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Tara felt the muffled tickle of eager anticipation ripple through the bond. A split second later, her cell phone rang and the young vampire nearly threw down the shaker she was holding in her haste to answer the call.

"Hello, lover mine," she greeted without preamble, her tone a low, seductive purr. She cradled the cell between her shoulder and ear as she continued to pour the necessary ingredients for an extra dry vodka martini into the shaker.

"_Crona__ím thú," _came Pam's voice over the tinny speaker, her naturally husky cadence dropping several registers in wake of hearing Tara's voice.

Tara deposited the martini with its olive fixings in front of its designated customer and retrieved the money. "I miss you too," she breathed out as she dropped the twenty into the till and returned the change to the human.

"How the fuck did you know what I said?" Pam demanded, her voice laced with surprise. The blonde wasn't often caught off guard but her progeny had a terrifying innate ability to turn the tables around on her. If she could have, she would have flushed at having been caught with her hand in the sentimental cookie jar.

Tara laughed, her mirth growing as she felt the murmur of shock and slight embarrassment coursing down from Pam's end of the bond. She delighted in knowing that she had called Pam out on her maudlin moment. "I can feel you missing me," she drawled nonchalantly as she set eight shot glasses on a tray.

Dead silence on the other end of the line. The young vampire could just picture the look of incredulousness on her maker's face, coupled with that infamous arched eyebrow. Tara sighed in resignation as she poured shot after shot of tequila into each glass with alarming accuracy, given that she was staring morosely at Fangtasia's main entrance, as if she could make Pam materialize through sheer will alone.

"Okay, I also Googled," she admitted, scowling slightly at having been caught on a lie as she pushed the completed tray of shots towards a patiently waiting waitress. She tucked the bottle of tequila back into its slot. "Why the affinity for Irish?" she asked curiously. Pam had lavished many a language on her, both in and out of bed but there were a select few she kept returning to that spurred the young vampire to do some research on the subject.

"It's a beautiful language." Pam's reply was noncommittal and instantly Tara knew there was a story behind her maker's indifferent explanation but now was not the time to push for answers. She was already missing Pam something fierce and starting a fight, of which they've already had many, would just add fuel to the already raging fire of emotions rolling through her veins.

"Will you teach me?" Tara asked. She was now refilling a redneck's mug of beer.

"Someday," Pam responded quietly. She sighed despondently as Eric's voice drifted to assault her ears from across the room. "I have to go."

Tara nearly cracked the mug she held in her hand into pieces. Her heart was screaming at her to keep Pam on the line, the maker/progeny bond writhing with misery at the abrupt end to the all too brief conversation. Instead of listening however, she set the mug none too gently in front of the redneck and turned her back on the customers loitering by the bar. It wouldn't do to let the patrons of Fangtasia know that its resident bartender was cracking under the pressure of heartache and longing.

"Okay," she spoke softly. Her eyes were already blinking rapidly as the hurricane of emotions raging inside her threatened to manifest in droplets of ruby red blood-tears. "Come home soon." She felt weak for the break that was so audible in her voice but the past few weeks had taken its toll on her. Living without Pam was akin to not being able to breathe, an ironic concept considering that as a vampire, she didn't _need_ to breathe.

On the other side of the country, the strangled grip Pam had on her cell phone almost snapped the device in two. She gritted her teeth against the ripples of angst and loneliness that bounded through the bond; whether it was from Tara or herself, she didn't know. All she knew was that it was potent and toxic and it compelled her to drop everything and take the first flight back to Shreveport. Steeling her nerves, she sucked in a needless breath. "Three days, s_chätzlein,_" she promised, her voice steely with conviction. "Three days."

Tara nodded needlessly, her eyes dark with hopelessness. "Three days," she echoed dully. Then, before she lost her last vestige of resolve to keep Pam on the phone, she shut it with a decisive snap, not bothering with a goodbye. Goodbyes hurt; they felt too permanent and the young vampire was barely holding to her sanity as it was.

Sliding her phone back into her jeans' pocket, she closed her eyes and inhaled unnecessarily. She spared herself a moment's reprieve, allowed herself to get centered, focused, before she returned to tending bar and watching over Fangtasia as per Pam's instructions.

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Tara savored the quiet that enveloped Fangtasia after closing. There was no constant buzz of pointless conversations, no beating of human hearts that constantly tempted her into a feeding frenzy, no ruckus from rude and drunk patrons. It was just her and the low strains of a mournful country tune coasting gently in the air through the bar's speakers.

_While you're staring at the stars tonight  
I'm all wrapped up in blue_

Tara quirked a bittersweet smile as the lyrics registered with her. _'How fitting_,' she thought as she sat by the bar, leafing through the inventory reports. Blue was an emotion that seldom left the young vampire's side these days. Not since Pam had left with Eric nearly four weeks ago. It was also bitterly ironic that blue also happened to be a color that sent sparks of desire and longing to shoot down her veins. Because blue was the color of her lover's eyes.

_If I had it my way  
I'd be on that train to LA_  
'_Cause I never met somebody quite like you_

She'd considered it, more times than it was healthy. The temptation to just abandon ship and hop on a plane to Seattle and fall straight into Pam's arms and just _hold_ her was so overwhelming that she could almost taste the satisfaction it would bring on the tip of her tongue. Nevertheless, she resisted the pull each time because she had a duty to fulfill. To Pam and to Fangtasia. Pam had left her in charge and she'd be damned if she did anything to taint the trust the blonde had bequeathed upon her.

_Missing you is more than I can do_

She missed Pam alright. It was an actual, physical ache, one that wouldn't taper, wouldn't relent, just plain wouldn't quit. It wreaked havoc throughout her body, scored deep grooves into her heart and tore pieces from her soul. It scared her, the fact that she missed someone with such frightening intensity. It made her feel vulnerable, weak and there was a small, dark part of her that hated Pam for making her feeling so dependent on the blonde.

_But I swear if my life was an open book  
It would be missing a page_

Tara released a miserable sigh and spared a glance at the clock behind the bar. Four am, the clock read. A little more than twenty-four hours before she would be graced with her maker's presence, bathe in the scent of apples and vanilla, feel the cool embrace of Pam's deceptively strong arms. A hand wandered up to press the flat of her palm firmly on spot over her heart. It was an unconscious gesture, one that Tara had developed and turned into a bad habit since Pam's absence.

Another pitiful sigh escaped from bee-stung lips and Tara closed her eyes against the sudden sting of blood-tears. The young vampire wasn't entirely sure if she could endure one more day without Pam but then again, she had grappled with this implication since the beginning of the month. What was one more day? She had made it almost twenty-eight days without Pam by her side. She could, _would_ endure another day.

_Missing you is more than I can do  
Yeah, missing you is more than I can do_

Tara was busy poring over the reports and making intermittent notes when the front door slammed open, the force of being so violently thrown ajar almost tearing it off its hinges. Tara was off the barstool instantaneously, her entire body going into a half-crouch as her fangs elongated over a vicious snarl that slashed a dangerous line across her lips.

"Easy," a voice drawled from the darkness beyond the door.

Tara straightened at the sound of that familiar husky drawl. She knew that voice, would know it anywhere. She blinked stupidly, shock encompassing her lithe frame as Pam stepped through the door, wearing a pale pink sweater, dark gray slacks, conservative pumps and her hair pulled back in a loose ponytail. Adorning her neck was a pearl necklace and she had pearl earrings to match. Dangling from the crook of her bent elbow was a simple dark pink handbag.

Tara continued to gape at the sight of her maker, wondering if her brain had finally snapped and she was currently in the throes of a very vivid hallucination. She took in Pam's ultra conservative outfit, a sharp contrast to the bold, wild and sometimes subversive costumes the blonde wore for Fangtasia and struggled for something witty to say but her tongue failed her, her voice nonexistent in her throat.

Maker and progeny faced off of each other, eyes of stormy cerulean blue locking onto rich whirlpools of coffee brown. The bond between them was currently purring like a satiated cat, ecstatic that its charges were finally in the same room as each other.

Tara had suddenly acquired tunnel vision. She saw nothing but Pam, smelt nothing but Pam. Nothing existed but Pam.

Pam too had turned every ounce of her attention onto her progeny and her intense gaze was riveted on the vampire across the room.

As maker and progeny stared at each other, the atmosphere in the room was suddenly alive with energy. The air fairly crackled with unresolved heat and tension as Tara stared at Pam and Pam stared at Tara, their bodies throwing off waves of want and need.

"You're early," Tara finally choked out, her tongue feeling like it was two sizes too big for the inside of her mouth. She suppressed a shudder when she felt the white-hot lick of desire crawl up her spine. The fire that burned between her and Pam was making its presence known, winding its flames around Tara's legs, threatened to make her knees buckle. It mocked her, taunted her, teased her with its scorching heat.

"I know." Pam intended her voice to come as dry and amused but instead, the raging storm of emotions rendered the lilt of her tone low, raspy, _needy_. She stared shamelessly across the bar at Tara, conveying her desire, her want, her need. Finally, unable to resist, she took a step forward…

And found herself violently propelled backwards by the force of her progeny slamming into her. Tara had vamp sped over to Pam the second her maker had taken an intentional step forward and had used her momentum and the element of surprise to throw the blonde up against the wall. Pam's back collided with the wall so hard that cracks appeared in the red paint adorning the walls and bits of plaster and dust rained down from the ceiling.

She didn't protest the aggressive manhandling, couldn't vocalize her thoughts even if she tried for Tara was ravishing her mouth with a desperation and a hunger that stole her metaphorical breath away. The young vampire was letting her hormones and emotions full reign and she held nothing back. Her fangs slashed mercilessly at Pam's full lower lip, splitting open the pillow-y flesh as Tara kissed her maker, hard, deep and fast. She forced the blonde's mouth open with determined probes of her tongue, then delved into the tepid, wet cavern of Pam's mouth, intermingling saliva and blood.

Pam moaned wantonly as Tara assaulted her mouth with the lips, teeth, fangs and tongue. The cuts on her lower lip stung as the tips of Tara's incisors kept aggravating the torn flesh but she paid them no mind, too immersed in the sensation of being back in her lover's arms. Blood trickled down her chin as she reached up with a hand and grabbed a handful of Tara's thick dark hair in a none too gentle grip. Yanking her progeny's head back, she forced Tara to break the kiss, dropped fang and sank them into the juncture between Tara's neck and shoulder, directly over her mark of ownership.

Tara screamed as the combined cocktail of pleasure and pain swept through her veins, igniting every nerve in her body. She threw her head back, reached around to cup the back of Pam's head and held her in place as Pam drank from her, marked her, _claimed_ her.

Tara's body was compliant against her as she sipped from the twin puncture wounds. Drawing in one last mouthful of blood, she reluctantly pulled her fangs away and licked at the bruised and ripped flesh, soothing the pain and closing up the wounds. She started slightly when Tara slid her hands down to the backs of her thighs and tugged. Instinct had her wrapping her legs around the young vampire's waist and she released a drawn out moan of pleasure when her center was pressed directly against the rough material of Tara's jeans.

Tara's biceps strained against her ebony skin in a topography of arches and dips that had the blonde all but drooling as she effortlessly kept Pam pinned against the wall. Leaning in, she repossessed Pam's lips, immediately taking in her full bottom one and sucking down on it. She teasingly bit at the soft flesh before swiping her tongue over each bite, soothing the slight sting that would follow each press of her teeth.

Pam touched what of Tara she could. One hand had maneuvered itself underneath Tara's plain royal blue tank top and was currently roaming the expanse of the young vampire's back, marveling at the wonderfully developed musculature it found. The other was boldly kneading Tara's ass, grabbing, pinching and caressing. Her lips and tongue were busy too as they fought for dominance with Tara's own.

The blonde emitted a slight gasp when Tara hauled her off of the wall and vamp sped them to the bar area. She threw Pam on the bar top, uncaring of the fact that the blonde's head met the solid surface with an audible crack, her loose ponytail coming undone, causing her hair to splay out like a golden-blonde halo.

"Kinky," Pam purred approvingly as she lifted herself up on her elbows, shaking away the residual ringing in her ears. She watched, her eyes hooded with unbridled passion as Tara knocked the pumps from her feet before she reached up to unbutton her slacks. With one swift pull, she had yanked them off of Pam, revealing endlessly long pale legs that Tara planned on worshipping every inch of after she fucked the blonde to within an inch of her undead life.

Unsurprisingly, Pam wasn't wearing any underwear and Tara took full advantage of this as she reached to grip either side of the blonde's thighs to pull her roughly towards her. She threw both of Pam's legs over each shoulder then dove in to Pam's drenched sex with a relentless mouth.

"TARA!" Pam's head fell back and would have reconnected angrily with the bar top had she not had been balancing herself on her elbows. She arched her back and bucked shamelessly into Tara's mouth. Her progeny was licking, sucking, nipping and nuzzling into Pam's sex like it was the last meal of her life. The unabashed and ardent noises coming from between the blonde's legs were so unrestrained and _dirty_ that had Pam been human and less knowledgeable in the art of sex, she would have no doubt blushed like a school girl.

Tara lapped at Pam's drenched center with determined fury. Her tongue was seemingly everywhere at once; flicking at the swollen bundle of nerves, licking up and down the slit between Pam's labia and penetrating Pam's sopping wet entrance. When she put her fingers into play and drove three fingers into the blonde without warning, Pam's unadulterated scream of surprise and pleasure ululated harshly throughout the bar. The young vampire spared her maker no mercy as she thrust into Pam with a ferocity and speed that skirted the border between pleasure and pain. She felt her own legs clench as Pam's inner walls squeezed at her fingers, drawing them deeper into the blonde. She pulled out the thrust back in repeating the motion until Pam was writhing and moaning uncontrollably beneath her, her litany of bold, colorful curses staining the air above her blue.

"I'm been dreaming about this," Tara growled as she plowed her fingers into Pam, scissoring her fingers intermittently to stretch out the tight ring of muscles. "Every fuckin' _minute_ of every fuckin' _night_, I've thought of nothing _but_ being inside of you." Another sharp thrust. "Fingering you." Thrust. "_Fucking_ you." She twisted her fingers, eliciting a guttural moan from Pam. "Driving my tongue so deep inside you that I don't where I begin and you end."

Tara wriggled in a fourth finger, twisted the angle of her hand and bit down gently on Pam's clit. Above her, Pam panted like a dog, her hips undulating at a preternatural speed against Tara's fingers and mouth.

"For almost a month, I've gone to ground with images you lying beneath me," Tara husked into Pam's wet sex. "Writhing." She circled her thumb around Pam's opening, teasing, taunting, her other four fingers already buried knuckle deep inside the blonde. "Your legs spread wide open." Pam's arousal seeped out from around Tara's thrusting fingers, lubricating the young vampire's still circling thumb. "Your cunt _dripping wet_ for me."

"FUCK!" Pam cried out as Tara began inching in her thumb carefully. The blonde fell back onto the bar top, her elbows no longer willing to support her weight as they quivered and shook under the waves of desire assaulting her body. Her head hit the hard surface with a decidedly unpleasant thump, sending her blonde hair to shoot out in all directions. "Oh fuck…Tara…fuck…"

When Tara's thumb was halfway inside of her, Pam had to fight hard not to succumb to unconsciousness. She was so full of Tara, stretched almost to the cusp of pain and the fact that Tara almost had her whole _hand_ inside of her was threatening to send her sapphire blue eyes rolling to the back of her head.

"That's it," Tara encouraged, her voice low and seductive as she eased her hand into Pam. Her trapped fingers ached, the blonde's inner muscles threatening to break the bones but the feel of her hand being inside of lover was like a persistent tongue between her legs. She watched as moisture all but gushed out from around her buried hand as she fisted Pam with slow intent.

When Tara managed to maneuver her hand into Pam up to the wrist, Pam was beyond able to form words, coherent or otherwise. She lay on the bar top, her chest heaving, her eyes hazy and her face pinched in concentration. Her hands were crushing either side of the counter, bits of polished wood falling from her clenched fingers. Her hips were still moving to meet every agonizing jerk of Tara's hand inside her but their movements were growing sluggish, too lost the blonde was in her lust and arousal to find the strength to move.

Tara bunched her fingers inside of Pam and carefully turned her wrist. A loud squelching sound followed as another flood of the blonde's arousal seeped out from around her hand. She thrust gently upwards and curled the tips of her fingers until they brushed against Pam's inner walls.

And that was all it took.

Pam came and she came _hard_, her body suddenly wildly animated again. She let loose a high-pitched wail, the sound so primal and so animalistic that Tara feared for her lover's vocal chords _and_ her own eardrums. Her lithe frame thrashed violently about on the bar top, almost falling off the edge at one point until Tara had the sense to right her with her free hand. Her back bowed to an almost breaking point and she gripped the sides of the bar top so hard that her fingers left indentations in the wood, the skin across her knuckles stretched taut and glowing white. Her legs wrapped itself around Tara's neck and shoulders, her thighs boxing Tara's ears and her calves strangling her neck. She dug her heels mercilessly into Tara's back as she screamed and thrashed her way through her climax.

Tara returned to licking at Pam's sex after she was sure her lover's orgasm wasn't going to do physical damage to her body. She almost choked on the rapidly flow of arousal dripping out from Pam's sex around her embedded hand; there was so much of it just leaking out. Lapping it all up, she slowly began easing her fingers out one by one, careful not to hurt Pam but from how wet her fingers were when they emerged, she knew that Pam's body was instinctively taking care to make sure she was well lubricated.

Pam lay limp and spent on the top of the bar, her ears ringing, her head buzzing, her eyes unfocused and her body still convulsing with aftershocks of her orgasm. Her grip on the bar top had grown slack and her legs now hung loosely over Tara's shoulders but when she felt Tara's fingers glide over her too sensitive sex and trace her opening, Pam groaned miserably. She reached down to knock Tara's hand away with a feeble flick of her wrist, needing a moment's reprieve from her lover's insatiable baby vamp hormones.

"No," Tara growled, her tone utterly displeased at being rejected. She returned her hand to Pam's still moist sex and almost snarled when Pam wrapped firm fingers around her wrist, preventing her from moving. "Let. Go." Her voice was so harsh with unfulfilled lust that it was almost sub-vocal.

"I need a goddamn minute, Tara." Even talking was an effort and Pam shut her eyes, inhaling and exhaling methodically as she fought to regain some of her basic motor functions. She groaned in frustration when Tara sent down the bond a tsunami strong wave of heat and lust. It crashed into Pam, immediately sending her senses reeling and her sex to clench. She whimpered helplessly. "Fuckin' baby vamp hormones."

"Lemme touch you," Tara begged, almost sobbing with her need to be back inside her lover. She struggled against Pam's grip on her, whimpered pitifully when Pam dug her nails none too gently into the skin of her wrist then went absolutely rigid with shock when Pam suddenly lunged forward and leapt off the bar top with a cat-like grace. She pounced on Tara and the force of their two bodies colliding could have more than easily punched a gaping hole through one of Fangtasia's sturdy walls.

Tara stumbled backward, her equilibrium scrambled as the weight of Pam descended on her like a sack of bricks. She dug the heel of her Chucks into the ground in a show of resistance but Pam pushed at her shoulders with vampiric force until her back hit the wall with a force that made her teeth rattle inside her head.

"My turn," Pam snarled, her voice guttural. Carnal desire was so evident in her eyes that it made the blue of her irises almost glow and Tara to shiver. Pam made a grab for Tara's wrists but the young vampire evaded her and in a show of surprising strength, pushed hard against Pam's chest with the flat of her palms, sending the blonde careening backward and into a nearby table. The furniture in question splintered beneath Pam, causing the blonde to lose her balance. She fell amongst the debris that littered the floor but before she could blur to her feet, Tara was straddling her, her jean-clad thighs trapping her on the ground by bracketing either side of her hips. Her progeny rocked forward and captured her lips in a bruising kiss that bordered on animalistic.

Pam reached up and ripped the tank top from Tara's torso. She threw the ruined pieces amongst the growing debris that surrounded them and raked her nails down Tara's back, leaving behind eight jagged streaks of angry red lines. Tara howled but pressed Pam onto the ground, her mouth fusing itself to the column of the blonde's neck. There she bit down hard, her fangs breaking the alabaster skin, causing blood to rush to the surface. She sucked at the blood, relishing the taste and the lingering flavor of apples and vanilla, uncaring that rivulets of the red liquid were meandering down Pam's clavicle to stain her sweater.

The second Pam felt the flat of Tara's tongue laving over the twin puncture wounds, closing them, she flipped the young vampire over so that Tara was now lying beneath her. When Tara made an attempt to sit up, Pam slammed an elbow down onto Tara's chest, locking her in place. She didn't give her progeny time to protest as she reached down to pop the button of Tara's jeans before pulling the offending article of clothing off Tara's legs. She stopped only to yank Tara's plain black Chucks off of her feet before ripping the jeans completely off her. Not bothering to give her progeny's underwear the same sensible treatment, Pam simply grabbed a fistful of the cotton material and wrenched it from Tara's hips.

"Hey that was my favorite pair!" Tara groused half-heartedly as she watched the tattered shreds of her deep purple boy briefs float briefly in the air before gravity made it flutter down to join the pieces of ruined table and tatters of her tank top.

"I'll buy you another," Pam replied absentmindedly as she settled between Tara's legs, her shoulders nudging at her progeny's inner thighs. She inhaled deeply, her senses going into overload as they were finally treated with the intoxicating smell of Tara's arousal after nearly a month of deprivation. Not wanting to waste another second, Pam leaned in and ran the flat of tongue down the length of Tara's sex.

"PAMELA!"

Tara's reaction was immediate as she bucked hard against Pam's tongue, her back arched and her head thrown back. Her hands instinctively reached down and gripped handfuls of thick blonde hair in an attempt to keep Pam in place, not that the blonde was planning on moving anytime soon. The ebony skinned vampire had no worries about Pam drawing out her pleasurable torture when she felt the almost fanatical way Pam's tongue was moving over her sex.

Pam had to reach up and clap a steadying hand over Tara's undulating hips lest Tara buck so hard against her face that she ended breaking Pam's nose. Again. She had to admire her progeny's zeal though; Tara never did anything halfheartedly and attacked everything with unbridled enthusiasm. This aspect of Tara just made the bedroom activities even more enjoyable.

Refocusing her attention to the current matters at hand, Pam licked and sucked at every drop of arousal Tara's sex was producing. Her nose nuzzled at her progeny's clit, eliciting a strangled cry from Tara. Her mouth was hard at work as she wriggled her tongue into Tara as far as it would go. An appreciative moan escaped from her parted lips when she felt Tara's inner walls trap her tongue inside her with a steely grip. Pushing against the tightness, she began thrusting her tongue in and out, determined to tongue fuck her lover into an earth shattering orgasm come hell or high water.

"Pam…shit…gawd! Yes…more!" Tara urged, her voice desperate. She shot up her hips, needing to feel her lover against the most sensitive part of her body. "Fuck! Yes!"

When the tip of Pam's tongue grazed that spot inside of her, Tara released a low keening sound that seemed to come from the deep confines of her throat. It was followed by a primal howl of pure pleasure as her orgasm broke over her in a ferocious wave of frenzied emotions. Between her legs, Pam made a noise of absolute satisfaction as Tara came in her mouth, flooding her tongue with her arousal.

Tara's entire frame was still convulsing in the wake of her orgasm when Pam retreated from between her legs, forcibly yanked her progeny to her feet and then slammed her front up against the side of the bar. She kicked out at a barstool that sat in her way; it flew and hit the far wall with an audible thump, breaking into many pieces of splintered wood. Pam paid the growing number of destroyed bar paraphernalia no mind as she kicked out at Tara's ankles, widening her progeny's stance.

Then she proceeded to fuck her from behind with three fingers. She forced Tara's upper body to drape over the bar top even as she drove into her with three unforgiving fingers.

"Shiiit! FUCK! Harder!"

Tara was panting needlessly, her guttural moans and grunts interspersed with curses and breathy sighs of Pam's name as the blonde penetrated her with her fingers.

"You're so goddamn _tight_," Pam gritted out from between clenched teeth as she thrust deeply into Tara, the corded muscles of her arms straining against the confines of her sweater as she used her fingers to work the young vampire into a passion-fueled frenzy. "So tight. So _wet_," she growled approvingly as she began to increase the speed and force of her thrusts.

"Do you how many times I've had to _fuck_ myself before I could go to sleep?" Pam's voice was almost resentful as she drove her fingers into Tara at punishing pace. "How many I've woken up so fuckin' _wet_ because you weren't there to _lick_ it up?" She pulled out her fingers until only the tips remained inside her progeny then plowed forward and sank them knuckle deep. Tara shrieked in manner that was decidedly uncivilized. "It was all I could do," Pam grunted as she fucked Tara hard from behind. "Not to hop on a plane just to come back here to fuck you so _hard_ that you pass out screaming my name." She twisted the fingers that were inside of her lover then teasingly scraped her fingernails against Tara's pulsating inner walls.

Tara bucked unashamedly back into Pam, her mind blissfully blank with pleasure. She gripped at the bar top with such force that bits of the wood started crumbling beneath her fingers but she didn't care, too lost in the feelings Pam was invoking from between her legs. She screamed, the sound sounding like it was violently ripped from her vocal chords, as Pam pulled her fingers all the way out before slamming them back into her and twisting them. Her second orgasm hit her hard and her hips were a virtual blur as she bounced them back and forth against the forceful rhythm of Pam's thrusting fingers.

Pam watched as her young lover came undone, her body rigid under the throes of passion, her inner walls clenching tightly at Pam's sheathed fingers. Reaching up with her free hand, she brushed aside tangled and messy strands of onyx black hair only to place reverent kisses along the back of Tara's neck and down her shoulder blades.

"Mine," she whispered into the ebony skin, possession etched into her voice. She continued depositing butterfly kisses, soaking up the taste of wild oranges and rich dark chocolate even as the hand between Tara's legs slowed its thrusts.

"Yours," Tara responded quietly, her voice painfully hoarse from vocalizing her pleasure so enthusiastically. Though dawn was nearing and leeching her of her strength, she managed to tap into a hidden reserve in order to turn to face Pam. She smiled lovingly, reached up with a shaking hand to stroke long fingers down the soft skin of Pam's cheek, a soft look clouding the dark of her dilated eyes when Pam instinctively leaned into her touch. "My lover," she murmured as she caressed Pam's face. "Mine."

"Yours," Pam breathed out, her voice no louder than a breathy sigh. "A_namchara,_" she whispered worshipfully, her voice breaking under the heavy pressure of love and devotion. "Soulmate," she explained softly to Tara when her progeny cocked her head inquisitively at the foreign word.

Tara's smile was brilliant, the intensity of it threatening to blind Pam. She slid down off the bar onto less than reliable legs and gently but firmly reversed their positions. She gripped Pam's hips and helped her hop onto the battered bar top, her legs fanning out to bracket Tara. The young vampire reached for the hem of Pam's blood stained sweater and began rolling it up the blonde's torso, revealing milky white skin as she went.

Pam lifted her arms, allowing Tara to pull the sweater over her head then lowered them with a sigh as Tara pressed a loving kiss to the valley between her breasts. She cradled the back of Tara's head, her fingers indulging in playing with the silky strands it found as Tara dotted kisses on and around her breasts before taking her left nipple into her mouth. The action was loving, slow and Pam instantly knew the reason to the sudden change of pace of their previously furious coupling. Tara was reaffirming her love for Pam. Now that they had more or less sated their base desires and cooled the heels of lust, it was time to tend to the affection and devotion they had for one another.

The pads of Pam's fingers gently massaged Tara's scalp as Tara loved one of Pam's breast with her mouth and caressed the other with her hand. Releasing the blonde's nipple with a small pop, she slithered up Pam's body only to ghost a kiss across bruised full lips as her hand meandered its way from Pam's breast down to her delicately toned abdomen, her fingers stroking, caressing and lingering on flawless skin.

Pam initiated a firmer kiss when Tara's fingers reached its destination between the apex of her maker's legs. Their lips slid over, against and between each other as Tara stroked sure fingers against Pam's still admirably wet sex. The blonde gasped into Tara's open mouth as her progeny slipped two fingers inside of her and began a slow, deep pumping that had her hips following easily.

"Beautiful," Tara murmured fondly against Pam's lips. She kissed the blonde deeply, soulfully as she gently slid in and out of her. "Exquisitely magnificent," she continued softly around peppering kisses on and around Pam's mouth. "Mine," she finished resolutely before capturing Pam's lips in a soul-shattering kiss her fingers never halting as they glided in and out of Pam.

"Yours," Pam managed to gasp out as she felt her impending climax creep up on her. She braced herself by gripping Tara's shoulder, her hips springing back and forth against the thrusts of Tara's fingers. When she felt Tara's fingers curl deep inside of her, a vivid splash of color burst behind her eyelids and her body went rigid with pleasure as her orgasm washed over her. She released a low whine of satisfaction and buried her head in the crook of Tara's shoulder, her nose nuzzling at the soft skin it found. Bloody tears pricked the corner of her eyes but she made no attempt to hide them as she clung unashamedly to Tara, riding out the waves of her climax.

When Pam's spasming body tapered off into shudders then intermittent jerks, Tara gently extracted her fingers from between the blonde's legs. She lifted them up to her mouth and cleaned off the evidence of Pam's arousal with her tongue, moaning softly at the taste of her lover. She paused when she felt a drop of moisture touch her neck and looked down to see Pam's blood rimmed eyes.

"Hey," she whispered, her voice soft with love as she reached down to cradle Pam's face in her hands. "I love you," she said, her voice ringing with sincerity. Leaning in, she kissed away the few droplets of bloody tears that had managed to escape and were currently clinging to pale skin. "I'm going to love you forever," she vowed, her voice quiet with steely conviction. She continued to pepper Pam's face with kisses, her cool lips feeling like wisps of snowflakes falling on the blonde's face.

Pam sank against Tara's loving touches, her own hands running soothing paths up and down Tara's back. "I love you," she repeated the words, her azure blue gaze, though marred with exhaustion and pleasure, still managed to convey her candor as she locked them with swirling pools of rich bittersweet chocolate brown. Pressing her forehead against Tara's, she closed her eyes, relishing the closeness of having the young vampire near her after almost a month of being away.

"Honey, I'm home," she drawled quietly.

Tara chuckled, the sound deep and genuine. She hugged Pam tightly to her, soaking up her touch, her scent. "I'm glad," she answered honestly. She turned her head slightly to press a lingering kiss to Pam's impossibly soft cheek. "Welcome home."

**TBC**

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**A/N 2** – According to Google, the translations to these words are as follows:

_**Anamchara**_ – soulmate (Irish)

_**Crona**__**ím thú**_ – I miss you (Irish)

_**S**__**chätzlein**_ – My little treasure/honey/sweetheart (German)

Oh, the song I used was _Missing You Is More Than I Can Do_ by the Randy Rogers Band.


	7. Chapter 7 – Eternal Flame

**A/N** – End of the road y'all! Thank you all for supporting this story and taking the time to leave me a review; it's all very much appreciated. I'm glad you enjoyed this tale as much as I enjoyed writing it. As always, let me know what you thought if you're not too busy. Happy reading!

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**Chapter 7 – Eternal Flame**

"_True love is a durable fire, in the mind ever burning."_ – Sir Walter Raleigh

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The fire that burned between Pam and Tara was proving inextinguishable. Not to say that it didn't have its moments of panic. There were periods where the fire flickered hard against icy blasts of cold air that seemed hell bent and awfully determined to stamp it out. There were intermittent moments where the furious clash of proverbial swords emitted so much acid that it fizzled the fire down to a dangerously low burn. There was also that one fight that threw so much frigid cold water over the fire that it had sputtered and smoked for days before the barely there glow of drenched embers managed to rekindle its arsenal of flames.

Yes, Pam and Tara fought, passionately and unabashedly as it was in their respective natures to do so. They fought with each other and _for_ each other. They fought because they were simultaneously too similar and too different, often clashing in a spectacular display of fire and ice and mingling about as well as oil and water.

However, underneath all their arguments and conflicts, the love they had for each other outweighed and out burned any verbal or physical collisions the pair stumbled across. It was their utter devotion and love towards one another that fed the flames of passion, kept it going even in times of uncertainty and turmoil. It helped that they never went to ground angry at each other; it was their cardinal rule. Even if one half of the party walked away, only to return the next night, the other half would stay awake, subjecting themselves to The Bleeds until the matter between them was resolved. Or they would endure the lethargy brought on by dawn along with The Bleeds as they fought to fix the mess that more often than not transpired between them.

Pam and Tara weren't perfect, far from it. But it was their willingness, their determination to fight for each other, for their bond, for the love they shared that kept the fire between them suspended in an everlasting burn.

xxxxxxxx

_Decades Later_

The sky above was a surreal canvas of indigo and violet, disturbed only by streaks of rust and saffron. Far off into the horizon, where the ocean kissed the sky, brilliant bursts of oranges and reds were punctuated with smatterings of yellow and gold, a residual effect from the setting sun.

Humans called this phenomenon of nature, twilight. It was a time between sunset and dusk, where the world was neither lit by the sun nor cloaked by the dark of night. For a few precious moments, light and dark harmonized with each other, painting the sky in hues of warm pastels along with deep, bold shades of purples and blues.

Next to waking up in Tara's arms, twilight was Pam's favorite moment of her waking hours, for it brought her not only the protective cover of night but also allowed her to glimpse the effect of the sun caressing the sky.

The blonde was standing on a secluded beach, her body preternaturally still as she savored the quiet around her. The sand was soft and cool beneath her bare feet, the ocean's waves of deep blue and green lapping gently onto the beach in steady intervals. A subtle wind danced around her still form, carrying with it the tinge of salt and grass. It sifted playful fingers though her loose golden-blonde hair, gently lifting the silky strands before gravity forced them to return to framing her model-esque face in carefree waves.

A soft, contented sigh fell from her lips when an ebony colored arm snaked around her waist and the unmistakable presence of her lover appeared at her back. Another arm edged around to her front, presenting a bottle of _Tru Blood Premium_, which was dangling precariously between lean and supple fingers.

Pam took the proffered item, relishing the warmth emanating from the bottle. "_Shukran, habibti,"_ she murmured before placing the bottle to her lips and taking a long swallow. Her lips curled around the bottle's top when she felt more than heard Tara's huff of exasperation.

"We're on a beach in _Ireland_, and you thank me in _Arabic?_" Tara dropped her head forward until it rested between the crooks of Pam's shoulder blades. Her other arm, now free from its burden of the Tru Blood bottle, reached down to complete the half circle her right arm had begun around Pam's waist. Lacing her fingers together as they rested over Pam's stomach, she sighed in patent disbelief. "Why do you this to me? When we were in Germany you kept waxing poetic in French and when we spent Christmas in Stockholm, you wouldn't stop speaking dirty to me in Spanish." She nudged her fingers gently against the abdominal muscles that were prominent despite the long-sleeved scoop neck t-shirt that covered Pam's's torso. "You do it on purpose, don't you?" Tara's ire was evident in her voice and she punctuated her annoyance with another long-suffering sigh.

Pam's curled lips turned into a full blown grin at Tara's tirade. At Tara's repeated huff, she emitted a low chuckle. She took another swig from the bottle. "Of course," she replied dryly, her amusement obvious in posture and tone. "Driving you crazy is one of my lifelong goals." Another chortle followed, the sound brimming with mirth and her body twitched delicately in response.

"Bitch," Tara grumbled into Pam's shoulder, though there was no bite behind the insult. She tightened her hold on the blonde and nuzzled her nose into Pam's sweet smelling hair, drenching her senses with the smell of apples and vanilla. "I don't know why I put up with you."

"You love me," came Pam's dry Southern drawl. She leaned unashamedly back into Tara, delighting in the closeness of their bodies.

"I do. God help me but I do," Tara responded helplessly. She angled her head in order to press a loving kiss to the side of Pam's neck, smiling against the lily-white skin when the action elicited a shiver. "_Gr__á__im th__ú__," _she whispered into a pale ear, her voice losing its sharp edges as she verbalized her love in melodiously tender tone. She backed up her words with a kiss to shell of Pam's ear.

"I love you too," Pam replied, her voice quiet with devotion. She lifted the bottle of synthetic blood. "Want a sip? The new_ Premium_ stock is marginally better than the original."

Tara shook her head as she resumed placing butterfly kisses along the side of Pam's jaw and down the column of her neck. "I had a _Bloody Quick Bite_ before I left the house," she murmured around a kiss.

Pam rolled her blue eyes at the name then made a face. "I don't know how you stomach those. I know technology has evolved far enough for the breathers to market blood-infused food at commercial prices but a vampire version of a trail bar?" Her nose scrunched in disgust and she took another swallow of her _Tru Blood_ _Premium_ in an attempt to wash away her disturbing thoughts.

"You're just a blood snob," Tara mumbled, her distracted tone indicating that she was much more interested in tasting every inch of Pam's delicious skin than holding a conversation with her lover. Her fingers roamed the expanse of Pam's abdomen before temptation sank in and she shoved one hand under the t-shirt, nails lightly scratching at the soft skin her fingers found.

"And you're horny as hell," Pam observed, playfulness coating her tone. She turned in the circle of Tara's arms, a pale eyebrow arched and her azure blue eyes alive with wicked glee. "Did the porn fairy pay a visit to your dreams, _lover_?"

Tara scowled and stepped back from Pam, dropping her arms in the process. "Must you ruin every good moment?" She turned and stalked over to the low wooden fence, the one that separated the beach from the grassy grounds surrounding their beach house. She hopped on the top wooden beam and perched herself on it, glowering out at the open sea.

Pam shook her head affectionately at Tara's temper tantrum, drained the bottle then blurred back to the house to deposit it before she vamp sped back to her progeny. She deliberately positioned herself between Tara's dangling legs and dropped a possessive hand on the young vampire's hip, thumbing at the sliver of skin that peeked out from between the hem of Tara's t-shirt and the top of her jeans.

"Don't sulk." She pushed herself up to the tip of her toes and pressed a lingering kiss to Tara's cheek, almost moaning when the aroma of oranges and dark chocolate seeped into her mouth. _"Gr__á__ mo chro__í__,"_ she whispered sweetly against the ebony skin of her lover's cheek. _Love of my heart._

Tara turned eyes the color of rich coffee brown onto Pam's cerulean blue. They didn't say anything for long moments, simply content to stare into each other's eyes. The bond between them pulsed happily, pushing love and affection back and forth between its two charges.

Pam took the quiet moment between them to simply marvel at the beauty that was Tara. Perched on the fence, with her raven hair blowing gently about her face, she looked disconcertingly innocent and exotically striking. Cerulean blue eyes tracked its way across Tara's proud features, from prominent cheekbones to the strong line of her jaw to the pillow-y softness of full lips that were slightly parted. Truly, Pam had never come across such exquisiteness and she was utterly captivated as her eyes continued to map every inch of her lover's gorgeous face.

Tara finally broke the stare when the world around them grew physically darker. She looked up at the sky; swathes of indigo mingled within the patchwork quilt of Prussian and cobalt blue. Ultramarine infused clouds smudged the otherwise flawless sky and speckles of stars were beginning to glitter like diamonds in the evening canvas.

"It's the color of your eyes," Tara breathed out, her tone saturated with wonder, her eyes shining with awe. She craned her neck, the corded muscles in her neck straining against smooth ebony skin as Tara tried to absorb as much of the night sky as she could. "Wow." Her own eyes, chips of bittersweet chocolate brown, flitted between Pam's deep blue gaze and the sky, as if she couldn't decide which was more resplendent.

"The French call it _l'heure bleue,"_ Pam explained quietly as she joined Tara in sky gazing. "The blue hour."

Tara allowed her gaze to linger on the darkening sky before she returned it to Pam's face. "It _is_ beautiful," she began, a soft smile playing about her lips. She reached down and cupped her maker's face, stroking supple fingers down the impossibly soft skin of the blonde's cheek. "But nothing will ever compare to the splendor I see whenever I look at you." Her lips curved gently when Pam leaned into her palm, eyes fluttering shut at her tender touch. "You are _everything_."

"So sappy," Pam murmured though she didn't begrudge the sentiments. She shifted closer to Tara and wrapped her arms around the young vampire before leaning her head against Tara's chest. "But very much appreciated."

Tara moved her hand to cup the back of Pam's head, her legs closing gently around the blonde's waist and interlocking themselves via her ankles when they connected behind Pam. Her fingers sifted through the soft strands of golden-blonde, marveling at the silky texture. "So Ireland huh?" she said by way of segueing into a new topic of conversation.

"Ireland," Pam sighed in agreement. She nuzzled her cheek into Tara's bosom, almost purring when she felt Tara's fingers idly digging into her scalp, massaging gently.

"She was your first?"

Pam chuckled at the understatement of Tara's question. She lifted her head and her eyes immediately found Tara's, even in the dark. "Yes. First love, first time with a girl, first time _making_ love." Her winter-blue eyes took on a faraway expression as she recalled the very first of her long list of lovers. "Meara was from here, Ballybunion. She loved the ocean." Another low chuckled emitted from Pam. "Ironic really, considering her name means 'sea'."

"You really loved her," Tara observed quietly. She reached down with her other hand and stroked the pads of her fingers along the side of Pam's jaw before reaching up with a thumb to swipe at a plump bottom lip.

Pam nodded, eyes half-mast from the loving administrations Tara was bestowing upon her. "I did."

The bond between them thumped unhappily against its confines of skin and bone when a white-hot flash of jealousy burned down from Tara's end. Embarrassment chased its tail; following so close it was nipping at jealousy's heels. Pam shifted her weight in response and Tara cut her eyes away from Pam, lest she see the shame in her eyes and dropping her legs from around the blonde in the process.

"Hey." Pam reached up and gently but firmly turned Tara's head so that she was once again facing her. "She was my _past_, Tara. You are my present." She removed the hand that was still lingering on her cheek and brought it to her lips, whispering a kiss across Tara's knuckles. "My future." Another kiss, this time to the inside of Tara's hand. "My eternity." She lifted her head and Tara bent obligingly to receive Pam's heartfelt kiss. "I just wanted to share a part of my past with you," she finished when they parted.

"I know," Tara mumbled, still embarrassed by her emotional reaction. "Stupid hormones," she muttered exasperatedly as she fought to regain control of her senses.

"You are too old a vampire to be laying blame on baby vamp hormones anymore," Pam deadpanned. She quirked an eyebrow and offered Tara a small smirk when her progeny's eyes narrowed dangerously down at her. "You know I'm right," she drawled unrepentantly.

Tara's response was to launched herself playfully at Pam. The blonde caught her flying lover deftly but the sudden force of Tara's body careening into hers sent Pam skidding backwards in the sand. Her heel had the great misfortune of catching the edge of a half-buried stone and immediately it upset her equilibrium, sending both her and Tara tumbling unceremoniously onto the ground.

Tara laughed giddily as she landed on top of Pam with a soft thump. Taking advantage of the moment, Tara began tickling Pam in earnest, her hands skirting under the thin material of the blonde's long-sleeved t-shirt to dig unrelenting fingers into Pam's ribs.

"Tara!" Pam was half-laughing, half-shrieking in protest and sheer joy as she squirmed about in the sand. Using her superior strength, she flipped them over and attempted to grab her lover's wandering hands but Tara quickly hooked her legs around Pam's calves and reversed their positions yet again. A spirited wrestling match quickly ensued and the stars that dotted the now pitch black sky seemed to twinkle merrily as it watched the two vampires roughhousing and rolling about in the sand.

"Tara, stop!" Pam gasped as she managed to wriggle out from under her progeny. She pulled herself into a sitting position for all of two seconds before Tara came at her again, sending her crashing back into the sand. Pam landed on her back with a thump and an "oof!" but recovered in a blink of an eye to roll Tara onto her back. Tufts of sands were sent kicking into the air, as maker and progeny frolicked about at vamp speed, their movements nothing more than smudges and blurs as they tousled their way down the beach.

The pair came to a stop when Pam finally had Tara pinned beneath her near the water's edge, her considerable age over her progeny giving her an upper hand in strength. "Yield," Pam purred, her face almost cracking under the triumphant Cheshire-cat grin stretched across her lips. The grin morphed into a decidedly wicked smirk as Tara showed no signs of surrendering as she writhed determinedly against Pam. "Yield, _habibti_, or I'll throw you into the water."

"You wouldn't fuckin' dare!" Tara's voice was indignant, her face going blank with shock. She struggled under the iron-clad grip Pam had on her wrists and fought back a whimper when the blonde pressed the length of her body fully against her own.

"Don't tempt me, Котёнок." Pam's voice had dropped several registers, her natural husky inflection deliberately low and seductive. She dropped her head forward an inch, her golden-blonde hair curtaining both her and Tara's faces. "Yield to me."

"I yield," Tara replied immediately, her own voice taking on a smoky inflection as Pam settled her hips between thighs that opened instinctively. She glanced up at the sapphire blue eyes that hovered so close to her own bittersweet chocolate ones.

Pam reached down and skimmed the pads of her fingers down Tara's cheek, marveling at the softness she found. "Lover," she whispered fondly as she looked down at her progeny, her eyes conveying a kind of love that only poets managed to describe so eloquently with words. "Playmate." Her fingers roamed over the gentle slope of Tara's nose. "Best friend." Her thumb caressed a full bottom lip. "Mine," she finished, her voice ending in a sub vocal growl.

"Yours," Tara responded in kind, as she basked in warmth of Pam's affections. Her breath hitched when Pam's thumb traced the curvature of her lip, the action sending a jolt of desire to zip down her veins. "Pamela," she husked, lips curving in affection when Pam shivered at the sound of her full name escaping from her lover's lips. "Kiss me," she pleaded, needing to feel the blonde's lips on her own.

Pam more than happily complied as she eagerly bent her head and sought Tara's full lips with her own. A petulant gust of wind blew granules of sand around and over them but neither vampire paid it any attention as they continued to explore each other's mouths with lips and tongue. It was only when Pam shifted her weight slightly that an uncomfortable sensation made its presence known between her breasts.

The blonde broke the kiss and sat up, a scowl crawling its way across her kiss-bruised lips.

"What?" Tara was confused by the sudden departure of Pam's mouth from her own. She propped herself up on her elbows and peered up at the blonde straddling her hips. "What's wrong?"

"There is _sand_ in my bra," Pam scowled. She reached under her shirt and began shaking grains of it loose. She shot Tara an irritated glare when her lover simply dissolved into peals of laughter beneath her, her joviality causing her elbows to shake, which upset the balance of Tara's weight. The young vampire fell backwards into the sand, giggles and snorts following her every move. "It's _not_ funny." Another shake dislodged a clump of sand that fell out from beneath her shirt. "I am _not_ amused, Tara." Her dry drawl was back in full force.

"Well _I_ am," Tara snickered, her dark eyes glowing with mirth. She sat back up when Pam growled at her. "Don't sulk," she cooed, repeating her lover's earlier admonishment. She even went so far as to pat Pam patronizingly on the cheek, the expression on her face completely tickled.

"Explain to me _why_ I put up with you again?" Pam's infamous brow was arched as she glared down at the young vampire, fire flashing from her cerulean blue eyes.

"'Cuz you love me," Tara replied simply.

Pam scoffed but didn't deny the allegation.

"You also have sand in your hair," Tara observed, another smile chasing its way across her lips. "Close your eyes," she quickly instructed her maker before Pam could spit out another biting retort.

Pam shook her head in annoyance but complied. She sighed softly, her body instantly relaxing as Tara's fingers carded themselves through her hair, shaking out residual clumps of sand that clung to the blonde strands.

"All done." Tara's soft voice carrying itself through the air to tickle her ears. Pam opened her eyes to find Tara looking at her with such fierce love shining from her unwavering gaze that it threatened to turn her eyes bloody. Instead, she reached up and plucked Tara's hand from her hair, turned her head and dropped a kiss to the inside of her lover's wrist, lips lingering to catch a whiff of oranges and dark chocolate.

"Take me home, _anamchara_." Eyes cut from the purest of sapphires bore into eternal pools of rich coffee brown. "Make love to me."

xxxxxxxx

"What are you writing back there?" Pam's voice was drowsy, her voice no louder than a languid murmur and half muffled by the pillow her cheek was currently pressed against. The blonde was lounging on a generously sized bed, stomach down. She was completely naked, but only her upper body was exposed, sheets of rich emerald green pulled down to puddle around her waist. A little further down the bed was Tara, who lay draped slightly sideways next to Pam. Her head rested on Pam's shoulder and she was busy writing sweet nothings onto the skin of her lover's back, only pausing to drop kisses or smooth caresses down flawless alabaster skin.

Pam released a soft sigh when she felt her progeny angle her head to drop a kiss to the back of her neck. Closing her eyes, she nuzzled deeper into the downy softness of the pillow, savoring the salty breeze drifting in from the open window and the close proximity of her lover.

Her state of lethargy and relaxation did not last. When Tara's finger traced a familiar shape over the lily-white canvas that was her back, Pam lifted her head and turned to look over her shoulder to throw a disbelieving glower at the young vampire. "Are you drawing _hearts_?!"

The sound of Tara's mirth, a deep throaty laugh that rumbled straight from the depths of her belly, echoed around the bedroom at Pam's outraged tone. She scooted closer to Pam's sprawled form until she was completely pressed up against the blonde's side. Then with a decidedly impish grin, she used her finger to write "P + T 4Ever", her strokes exaggerated and deliberate across Pam's back. To add insult to injury, she then enclosed the words inside a heart, chortling as she went.

Pam shook her head, sending tendrils of tousled blonde hair to sway gently about her face. "Nearly a century old and you're _still_ a juvenile delinquent." Her face was completely unimpressed as she continued to level an unamused look at her lover.

Tara merely chuckled at the dark look on her maker's face. "Almost three centuries old and you _still_ have the emotional capacity of a shot glass." She lifted a hand to blow Pam a mocking kiss. "You win some, you lose some, lover mine."

Pam dropped her head back onto the pillow with a groan. "Gawd, I wish I knew how to quit you," she bemoaned dramatically, her Southern twang purposely accentuated. She buried her head into the pillow, mumbling nonsensically.

Tara slithered up the bed until her face was level with Pam's head. She reached out and smoothed a hand down messy locks of golden-blonde hair before tucking an errant strand behind Pam's ear. Then she leaned down and ghosted a lingering kiss to the smooth skin of Pam's cheek before moving her lips up to Pam's ear.

"You can't live without me," she whispered into a pale ear, her voice neither arrogant nor boastful. Tara was simply stating fact.

At the words, Pam's face reemerged from the pillow and she found herself running smack dab into a pair of mischievous bittersweet chocolate eyes. "No," she agreed readily as she propped herself up on one elbow, her palm upturned to cradle the side of her head. Her other hand immediately snaked out and found purchase on Tara's cheek, cupping it and stroking sure fingers down the soft ebony skin. "I can't."

Tara leaned into the touch, the act completely instinctive and unconscious. Her eyes fluttered, threatening to close, as she relished the feel of Pam's fingers against her skin. "Good," she murmured. "'Cuz I can't live without you either." She inched forward to close the miniscule distance between them only to brush her lips against Pam's waiting ones, persisting long enough to soak up the taste of apples and vanilla. "Will you recite something for me?" she asked when she pulled back.

Pam's face immediately creased into a soft smile at the request, her eyes adopting a look of pure adoration. It had become a nightly ritual between them, reciting quotes, poems, lyrics or simply excerpts from their favorite pieces of literature whilst they lay in bed, basking in the afterglow of their lovemaking.

"What would you like to hear tonight, s_chätzlein_?" Even her voice was soft, the husky inflection of her tone demure and compliant.

The features on Tara's face lit up like a Christmas tree at the nickname, her expression utterly smitten. It was the first of many endearments Pam had bestowed upon her but because it was the very first, it held a special place in the young vampire's heart and warmed her soul whenever the blonde used it.

"Anythang," Tara breathed out, her voice bathed in veneration. She pressed her cheek further into Pam's hand, seeking touch and comfort. Pam reciprocated by gently caressing the soft skin she found beneath her fingertips. Between them, the bond wriggled about happily like an excited puppy, drunk on the intensity of their love and devotion to each other.

"_I do not love you as if you were salt-rose or topaz_," Pam began quietly, her dry Southern drawl slipping slightly into an accent of soft, rounded vowels as it so often did whenever emotions were heightened and her guard was completely down.

Pam watched as Tara readjusted her position under the covers, settling herself into a more comfortable position. Her lover balanced herself up on her elbows, her upturned hands cradling either side of her chin. The sudden close proximity of their faces would have resulted in them sharing the same pocket of air had they needed to breathe. Instead, they simply enjoyed the intermingling aromas of oranges and dark chocolate and apples and vanilla along with the calming presence of each other.

"_Or the arrows of carnations the fire shoots off."_ A pale hand reached out and lazily twirled a lock of sable hair around its finger, relishing the silky softness. "_I love you as certain dark things are to be loved, in secret, between the shadow and soul."_

A smile born of pure unadulterated happiness played across Tara's lips as the sound of Pam's voice washed over like the most soothing and warm wave. She delighted in the slight shivers her maker's husky rasp made her body produce, reveled in the way Pam almost absentmindedly played with her hair and willingly lost herself in Pam's steady and unyielding deep-blue gaze.

"_I love you as the plant that never blooms, but carries in itself the light of hidden flowers,"_ Pam continued, her tone reverent. Her azure blue eyes never left Tara's twin chips of dark chocolate as she recited Pablo Neruda's _Sonnet XVII_ from memory. Honesty rang loud and clear with every word she spoke, her expression almost painful with undying love. She moved her hand from playing with Tara's hair to resume stroking her fingers down the young vampire's cheek. _"Thanks to your love, a certain solid fragrance, risen from the earth, lives darkly in my soul."_

"_I love you without knowing how,"_ Tara interjected gently, smirking a little when the whites of Pam's eyes became more prominent in wake of the blonde adopting a wide-eyed look of surprise. Unable to resist, the young vampire rocked forward to press a loving, devoted kiss to Pam's full lips. "_- or when, or from where,"_ she continued sweetly, whispering the stanza against Pam's mouth. _"I love you straightforwardly, without complexities or pride_." Eyes the color of rich coffee brown locked onto twin pools of startling sapphire blue, communicating so much with just a single look. Love shone the brightest though, shone so bright that it almost blinded them. "_So I love you because I know no other way."_

"Impressive," Pam breathed out. She stole another sweet kiss drenching her mouth with the flavors of oranges and dark chocolate.

"I know I ain't the sharpest tool in the shed but I ain't completely stupid either." Tara's tone was self-depreciating and blasé but having known Tara as long as she did, Pam caught the undertone of insecurity and hurt lingering beneath her nonchalance.

Pam's hand sneaked to the back of Tara's neck. She massaged at the tense muscles and nuzzled her nose against Tara's, an action that always resulted in her progeny scrunching up her nose in a manner that the blonde secretly found utterly adorable. "You know that's not what I meant, _min äskling."_ Her hand drifted up to tangle its fingers in thick raven locks. "Don't put words in my mouth, Tara."

Tara scoffed, hating herself for breaking up the magical moment but her sudden display of insecurity and pride caused her to hang her head in shame. She tried to remove herself from the bed in an attempt to compose herself but Pam tightened the grip she had on her lover's hair, disallowing any further movement. Her firm grip tapered back into sifting thoughtful and soothing fingers through Tara's thick dark locks when Tara slumped back towards her, her expression an odd mixture of remorse and wounded.

"_I love you against reason_," Pam quoted _Great Expectations_, her voice a soft burr. She looked deep into Tara's eyes to convey her love, her sincerity and smiled when she saw the hurt and ignominy immediately ebb away from the dark chocolate of her lover's irises. _"-against promise, against peace._" The hand that was nestled contently in Tara's hair popped out to catch a drop of ruby red clinging desperately to Tara's eyelashes. "_I love you against hope, against happiness-" _She felt her own eyes bloody as the bond that tethered them to each other for all eternity almost buckled under the weight of love its charges sent through it. "_-against all discouragement that could be."_

Tara surged forward and captured Pam's lips in a kiss that splintered her soul and made her heart weep. She kissed her lover, her maker, her _everything_ until she saw nothing but Pam, felt nothing but Pam, tasted nothing but Pam and thought nothing but Pam.

"Never doubt my love for you, Tara." Pam's vision was blurry from unshed blood-tears. "And never doubt your worth because you are worth _everything_." She sat up on the bed, bringing Tara with her. She cupped Tara's face in her hands, held her like she was the most precious of treasures. "_I want you for __**always**__…days, years, eternities."_ There was such steely conviction in her voice that it left no room for hesitation or doubt. "You and me, Tara," she vowed, her voice no louder than a hoarse whisper, her tone choked with raw emotion. "We're _forever_. This, I promise you."

And with that, Pam tilted Tara's head up and sealed her promise with a kiss.

**FIN**

* * *

"_True love has no happily ever after because true love never ends."_ – K. Knight

* * *

**A/N** **2 **– Translations! Why did I throw in so many endearments in so many random languages you ask? Because nicknames and words of love seem so much more _romantic_ and beautiful in non-English languages. In my opinion, anyway. Plus, I think being well versed in many different tongues suits Pam.

_**Shukran, habibti**_– Thank you, my beloved/darling (Arabic)

_**Anamchara**_ – soulmate (Irish)

_**Gr**__**á**__** mo chro**__**í**_ – love of my heart (Irish)

_**Gr**__**á**__**im th**__**ú**_ – I love you (Irish)

Котёнок – kitten (Russian)

**S**_**chätzlein**_ – my little treasure/honey/sweetheart (German)

_**Min äskling**_ – my love (Swedish)


End file.
